Kolkata (West Bengal): The West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) has decided to set up a new cell for better coordination with the administration to rehabilitate victims trafficked and rescued during the COVID-19 outbreak, its chairperson said on Saturday.
The new cell comprising representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) will work towards alleviating mental agony of the rescued victims and rehabilitating them in the post-COVID world, WBCPCR chairperson Ananya Chakraborty said.
Also read: Give Rs 10 lakh as ex-gratia to kin of COVID-19 victims: Cong
"The cell will focus on addressing the problems faced by the victims during the present situation as they are much stressed now, besides thinking of their future," she said.
It will work alongside the helpline number launched by the WBCPCR in June to register complaints and queries by victims of child trafficking and marriage, Chakraborty said.
"We provide support to the administration by helping them identify vulnerable groups by networking with NGOs. We are a support group," she said.
Chakraborty, however, clarified the decision in this regard was not taken in the wake of the Centre issuing an advisory on July 6 asking states to evolve a coordination mechanism among departments to prevent child trafficking, besides conducting awareness drives on the issue of missing children and working with local bodies to trace and recover victims.