In a bid to address and curb violence against students inside and outside the premises of schools, the Delhi Government’s Directorate of Education (DoE) has decided to create a joint WhatsApp group to take immediate action by sharing important information and details. These WhatsApp groups will be instrumental in informing the Delhi Police in the event of an untoward incident being reported inside school campus.
The group will have important members from the Education Department and the Delhi Police such as the Head of the Schools, Zonal and Deputy Director of Education (DDEs) and the area Assistant Commissioners of Police (ACPs) and concerned Station House Officers (SHOs). “The main motive of the group is to stay in touch with the police department by updating information about anything that happens with the student in and around the school”, said an official.
In a recently held meeting, the DoE asked all the DDE’s, Head of the Schools, Secretary of Education and others to submit their Whatsapp numbers within two weeks in order to get the same added in the group. “In the wake of recent cases of violence against school children within and outside schools, it is crucial that the field officers of the education department remain in close contact with the field officers of the officer Police Department, most importantly the area ACP and the concerned SHO,” states the circular issued by Sanjay Goel the Director of Education, Delhi Government.
In a recent instance, recently, a student was stabbed by another student over a fight inside the school situated in Shahdara. Also, another incident took place near the Government school situated in Babarpur o North east Delhi where a student was brutally beaten to death by a group of other boys following a scuffle happened earlier.
The main motive of the group is to send and receive important information (any violence, incident, crime happen in the schools) and help one another during the time of emergency especially.
“At time, in the hour of urgency, when it is difficult to make telephonic contacts, social media can prove to be useful for sending/ recovering short and crisp pieces of important information and helping one another. It is therefore, ordered that all zonal DDEs shall provide, in writing the cellular phone numbers of all HOSs to the concerned jurisdictional Station House Officers (SHOs) with the request to institute a joint Whastapp group through which platform both sides can exchange necessary information,” said Goel further in the order circulated to all the concerned departments.
Moreover, the DoE said if in any case the SHO will not take action, the concerned DDE can escalate the matter to the District DDE to take up the matter with the area Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP). The directorate has also asked the Special Commissioner of Police (CP) women and child safety to give guide all the SHOs regarding the group.
Currently, there are around 5731 schools in Delhi including the central aided and all the Municipal Corporation schools with around 42,21,237 students enrolled in it.