SAMBALPUR: In an effort to strengthen child protection, the Northern Range headquarters of Odisha Police has released comprehensive guidelines for the establishment of ‘Ama Police Samiti’ across five districts in western Odisha.

Issued by IG (Northern Range) Himanshu Lal, the guidelines aim to tackle increasing concerns regarding child marriage, labor, trafficking, abuse, and neglect. Lal recently sent a letter to the Superintendents of Police (SPs) of Sambalpur, Bargarh, Balangir, Jharsuguda, and Sonepur, instructing them to ensure the implementation of these guidelines at all police stations within their jurisdictions.

The letter highlighted that children in western Odisha are particularly at risk due to factors such as migration, mining activities, and socio-economic challenges. Citing NFHS-5 data, it pointed out that 20.5 percent of girls in Odisha are married before reaching adulthood, with a higher prevalence noted in tribal-dominated and western districts.

Designed as a community-police partnership initiative, the Ama Police Samiti will also improve local safety and protect vulnerable groups, including women and senior citizens. These committees will assist law enforcement through awareness campaigns, community engagement, monitoring of suspicious activities, and efforts to combat social issues.

The guidelines call for the creation of databases for vulnerable children, monitoring of marriages through village registers, and the identification of five villages under each police station to be developed as child-friendly villages. Police personnel will conduct regular visits to these villages to oversee the implementation of planned activities.