Srinagar, Aug 28: Following a rigorous campaign by International Human Rights Groups including Amnesty International, the State Government has finally decided to establish a Juvenile Home for minor detainees in the Valley. 
 Pertinently, the Juvenile Home will provide the minor detainees a safe place away from the professional criminals. “For this purpose, the already existing Orphanage at Harwan has been converted into the Juvenile Home,” Director Social Welfare Hilal Ahmad told Greater Kashmir.
 He said the Juvenile Home would focus on mental and physical development of the minor detainees. “The Home will facilitate the education as well as the health related issues of the minors. The social welfare of the detainees will be looked at various levels to rehabilitate them,” he said.
 In this regard, the Government has issued an order no: 12-SW of 2011, dated June 16, 2011. However, the observers believed, the Juvenile Home’ shouldn’t be designed as home instead of ordinary jails. “
  As per the Juveniles Justice Act 1997, any minor detainee should be kept in separate ‘homes’ other than a jail or a police station. But the situation was opposite in Kashmir.
  According to Human rights lawyers and activist, the detention of juveniles with professional criminals was dangerous for the society as it diminishes the fear of law in them.
 The Human Rights Watchdog Amnesty International forcefully intervened in the ‘unlawful detention’ of minors in ordinary jails. They also started a campaign against it.   
 Since the implementation of the Act in J&K, only one reformatory home has been established in Jammu division. Pertinently, since last year’s unrest minors have been booked for stone pelting and they were lodged in jails and police stations in absence of Juvenile Home.

Lastupdate on : Sun, 28 Aug 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sun, 28 Aug 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Mon, 29 Aug 2011 00:00:00 IST