Indian Tribal News Service
New Delhi
The Centre will on Monday launch a National Helpline Against Atrocities (NHAA) to ensure the proper implementation of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Devised by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, the NHAA can be accessed by making a voice call/VOIP either from a mobile or landline number of any telecom operator across the country. The service will also be available on mobile application.
“The objective of the helpline is to build informed awareness about the provisions of the law that are aimed at ending discrimination and provide protection to all. The system will ensure that every complaint is registered as an FIR, relief is provided, all registered complaints are investigated and all chargesheets filed are prosecuted in the Courts for decision – all within the given timelines in the Act,” a statement by the Ministry said.
Available as a web based self-service portal also, the NHAA will generate awareness about the Protection of Civil Right (PCR) Act, 1955 and its rules as well.
- As per National Crime Records Bureau, maximum cases of offences against SCs/STs were registered in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in 2020
- In 2020, 50,291 cases were registered for crimes committed against SCs, an increase of 9.4 per cent over 2019 (45,961 cases)
- Crime rate increased from 22.8 per lakh population to 25 per lakh population in 2020
- A total of 8,272 cases were registered for committing crime against STs in 2020, an increase of 9.3 per cent over 2019 (7,570 cases)
- Crime rate registered increased from 7.3 per lakh population in 2019 to 7.9 per lakh population in 2020
How will it work?
A Docket number shall be given for each complaint received from Victim/Complainant/NGOs regarding non-compliance of the POA Act, 1989 and the PCR Act, 1955. The status of the grievance can be tracked by complainant/NGOs online. Any inquiry shall be replied by IVR or operators in Hindi, English and Regional languages. This helpline will adopt the concept of Single Point of Contact and have a proper feedback system.
