Delhi school boys take pledge to respect women

In one of the unique initiative for women safety, over 22 lakh children from the Delhi schools came together on Monday with boys taking a pledge to honour and respect women while girls promised to make their brothers take the same oaths at home.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal administers the oath to the school students across Delhi through a live video telecast in various government, private and aided schools, saying we need to change the mindsets of people to stop crimes against women.

The step, the government said, was taken to sensitize the students on gender issues and crimes against women.

In the event, the boys were made to take an oath to respect women and to never misbehave with any women and the Chief Minister requested the girl students to talk to their brothers at home and take the same oath, and to warn them of the repercussions of such acts.

He also requested the teachers to conduct a one-hour classroom discussion on the experiences of the students and the reactions of their family members on the oath.

"We launched the women's safety campaign today along with 22 lakh children from all schools in Delhi. The police and the law and order have to be corrected. CCTV cameras and street lights are also being introduced. But the mindset of the society has to be changed. We have to create a Delhi where women can get out of the house without fear even at night," the Chief Minister said.

He emphasised that we, as a society, need to change the mindsets of the people to put an end to the crime against women.

"We are gathered here today to address a very important issue, which is not generally discussed in homes or amongst friends and families. The issue has taken a worse form because of that and we end up hearing about horrifying incidents of crimes against our children every second day. People of all ages and backgrounds, educated or uneducated, rich or poor are involved in crimes. I agree that the government and the police must act upon such incidents, but they will not be able to achieve anything until we change the mindset of the people. We have to change the thought process of the people to stop such incidents."

He also asked the students to suggest solutions to stop crimes against women. "I want all of you to tell me what can be the reasons behind the increase in such brutal incidents and what should be the solution?"

He said that the convicts are not scared of the consequences of their actions, they do not fear the law and the cases filed against them usually take a long time to get resolved. Kejriwal suggested that the families should disown convicts and should not try to save them from punishment.IANS