NHRC issues notice to Union and states over child sexual abuse material on social media
The human rights body, NHRC recently issued notices to all the Union, state and Union territory governments over the spread of the menace of child sexual abuse material on social media after an American NGO came out with a report saying the circulation of such material has increased by 250-300 per cent in India.
Taking suo motu cognisance of a report by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NC-MEC), an American NGO that circulation of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on social media has increased by 250-300 per cent in India, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) recently issued notices to the Union and state governments, seeking detailed reports within six weeks on the steps taken to prevent such menace, according to a statement issued by the child rights body.
The notices were issued to the commissioner of police (CP), Delhi, the director generals of police (DGPs) of all the states and Union territories, the director of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) and the secretary of the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
According to the report, just in 2023, 4,50,207 cases of spread of SCAM on social media have been reported. However, the human rights panel also said in its statement that such content are from foreign countries, with the Indian investigation agencies have not come across any Indian-made material so far.
The NHRC said it is concerned with the ill-effects of online CSAM as it may cost irreparable psychological damage to children, impacting their growth and development. As a consequence, it has been organising dialogues to come out with ways and means to check this menace, the latest being a national seminar at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi in March.
