Cuttack: Jurists speaking at the fourth Eastern Region Round Table Conference on juvenile justice issues here on Saturday stressed on the importance of bringing together the judiciary, executive and all stakeholders and reviewing the plan of action to develop the way forward for effective implementation of the Juvenile Justice Act 2015.
The speakers said education of children at child care institutions was important.
The conference was organised by the Supreme Court Juvenile Justice Committee and High Court Committee on Juvenile Justice with the support of the state government and Unicef.
The one-day conference sought views from the representatives of various states and to develop strategies for effective implementation of the act in India. Five states - Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand took part in the conference.
The regional round table conferences held since 2014 provide an opportunity for multiple stakeholders from participating states to share their experiences and to ensure that speedy justice to children becomes a reality for all children in the country.
Orissa High Court Juvenile Justice Committee chairman Justice S.K. Mishra said: "The objective of the consultation is to take stock of the progress made on the key recommendations from the previous three conferences focus on the implementation status of the Integrated Child Protection Scheme."
Supreme Court judge Justice Deepak Gupta said child protection services should are expected to be "child sensitive". "Protection and prevention is better than rescue. The first effort should be to prevent children to be in conflict with law," Justice Gupta said. "Child care institutions unfortunately are not emphasising on education."
Orissa High Court Chief Justice Vineet Saran said there was need for identification of issues of violation of child rights at the village level. He said: "Neglecting children is loss to society as a whole."
Unicef Odisha chief Yumi Bae said: "Soft skills such as respect, empathy and compassion for children and their families are essential for meaningful contribution for implementing legislation for children."
