The Jharkhand High Court on Wednesday asked the state government to fully enforce the safety guidelines issued by the Jharkhand Legal Services Authority (JHALSA) for protecting girls and women across the state.
A division bench of Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajesh Shankar issued the direction while hearing a public interest litigation filed by petitioner Bharati Kaushal.
The court specifically instructed the School Education and Literacy Department to ensure that all government and private girls’ schools follow the guidelines prepared by JHALSA. The suggestions include installing CCTV cameras in and around educational institutions and deploying an adequate number of police constables to maintain law and order near school premises.
During the hearing, the government informed the bench that it had prepared a 25-point checklist for schools based on JHALSA’s recommendations. However, the petitioner pointed out that several points had not been properly covered and the extent of compliance remained unclear.
Taking note of these gaps, the bench directed the state government to ensure complete compliance from all schools and file a detailed report before the next hearing.
The matter is now scheduled to be heard again on December 3.
