Teachers guilty of child abuse to face dismissal
 http://www.thehindu.com/news/ states/tamil-nadu/ article3574030.ece
"It's now up to all of us, to make sure that schools are held accountable and educated about this GO "
Teachers guilty of child abuse to face dismissal
Teachers indulging in child sexual abuse will, 
henceforth, be punished with compulsory retirement, removal or instant 
dismissal. 
A government order issued by the School 
Education department states that it might go to the extent of cancelling
 all academic credentials of such teachers to ensure that they do not 
get to work elsewhere as a teacher. Though the order was issued on May 
17, it is available in public domain only now. Asked if teachers were 
aware of it, senior officials said the message had been circulated 
around in the beginning of the new academic year. According to the GO, 
schools will have to hold awareness programmes to educate children on 
dealing with such situations. Teachers will be asked to attend 
sensitisation programmes, where counsellors will address them. 
The department will launch mobile counselling centres to create awareness among students and teachers. 
According
 to a department senior official, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, in a 
recent review meeting, emphatically stated that no teacher found to have
 sexually abused a student should be allowed to continue in service. 
The
 move sends out a strong message to all schools, including private ones,
 that child sexual abuse is a serious crime and will be dealt with 
severely. activists working in the area of child rights and prevention 
of child sexual abuse felt that the government must, in addition to the 
GO, lay down the protocol to investigate such cases. 
According
 to sources, a teacher who was found guilty of abusing a student in 
Tirunelveli was merely transferred. On Monday, parents protested outside
 Panchayat Union Middle School at Vadugapatti near Namakkal, demanding 
that an English teacher who allegedly abused girl students be dismissed.
 
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