Gandhinagar, May 7 (IANS) A joint approach between government institutions and social organisations in strengthening child rights protection, particularly at the implementation level, was highlighted at a state-level workshop held in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar on the theme ‘Child Rights: Issues and Challenges’.

Addressing the workshop on Thursday, Gujarat Labour, Skill Development, Employment and Rural Development Minister Kunvarji Bavaliya said cooperation between the government and social organisations in the field of child protection was “highly commendable”.

“The responsibility of nurturing and safeguarding children was collective, adding that just as a potter shapes clay into a vessel, society plays a key role in shaping children’s lives through care, values and protection,” he added.

The workshop-cum-training programme was jointly organised by the Gujarat State Commission for Protection of Child Rights and the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation at the Forest Training Centre in Gandhinagar.

It brought together representatives of voluntary organisations, civil society groups and NGOs, with subject experts delivering detailed sessions on child rights and related challenges.

Gandhinagar Mayor Miraben Patel also attended the programme.

Minister Bavaliya said, “The government is committed to ensuring that welfare schemes reached children across all sections of society, including those from labourer families and vulnerable backgrounds.”

Referring to children seen at construction sites and roadside locations, the Minister noted that “their access to education and healthcare required immediate attention”.

He said that digital initiatives such as the ‘Shram Setu Portal’ and the ‘Shramik Sahayak Call Centre’ had been introduced to provide quicker support and grievance redressal for workers and their families.

“Sustained awareness is necessary to address social issues such as child marriage,” he added.

He appreciated the efforts of the Child Rights Commission in conducting district-level outreach activities to spread awareness about child protection.

“Coordination between government bodies and social organisations needed to be strengthened further to ensure that no gap remained in the delivery of child welfare measures,” he said.

Child Rights Protection Commission Chairperson Dharmishtha Gajjar said, “Children represented the foundation of society and played an important role in nation-building.”

She added that the protection of their rights, health and education required coordinated efforts from all stakeholders.

“Working for the safe future of children is our collective responsibility,” she said, stressing the need to expand awareness initiatives against child labour and child marriage.

She added that the commission was actively engaged in monitoring institutions such as schools and anganwadis to ensure that children’s rights were not violated.

Over the past one-and-a-half years, she said, the commission had undertaken field visits across districts to ensure that government schemes reached children at the grassroots level and to address their concerns.

The workshop also focused on identifying current challenges in child rights protection and sharing best practices from field organisations to improve implementation outcomes.

Participants discussed ways to strengthen coordination between NGOs and government agencies for more effective delivery of child welfare initiatives.

During the programme, Ahmedabad-based Mahi Bhatt was felicitated for her achievements.

–IANS

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