India government comes up with anti-punishment guidelines for schools

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A key government body on Monday unveiled guidelines to eliminate physical punishment and discipline schools after a survey came up with shocking findings on students being subjected to corporal punishment.

Special monitoring cells to take action in cases of physical punishment, undertakings by teachers against beatings and social audits of schools in areas of corporal punishment are among guidelines unveiled today by National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).

The NCPCR brought out the Guidelines after a detailed study which was conducted in 2009-10 involving 6,632 children across seven states revealed a shameful picture. The NCPCR survey revealed that the use of physical punishments was rampant in Indian schools and cane beating by teachers was a common practice.

Even kids in the age groups 3 to five years were not spared, the survey revealed. The survey also revealed prevalence of cruel forms of punishment like giving electric shocks to children.

Equipped with the hard findings of its survey, the NCPCR revealed a slew of measures which is feels would seriously dent the ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’ methods. Amongst the prominent measures that the guidelines suggest is the formation of Corporal Punishment Monitoring Cells (CPMCs) by schools.

The CPMCs should not only hear grievances related to corporal punishment, child sexual abuse, mental harassment about also forward recommendations to district level authorities within 48 hours of the occurrence.

The NCPCR's ‘Guidelines for eliminating corporal punishment in schools’ also suggest that school teachers should provide a written undertaking stating that they would not engage in any action that could be construed as amounting to physical punishment, mental harassment or discrimination.