NCPCR (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – Polity)

Context: The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights has sought action against an app for allegedly disseminating objectionable material targeted at children.

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights

• About: The Commission envisages a rights-based perspective, which flows into national policies and programmes, including defined responses at the state, district and block levels, taking into account the specifics and strengths of each region.
• Statutory body: set up in March 2007 under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005.
• Ministry: It is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Women & Child Development.
• Composition: a chairperson and six members of which at least two should be women.
• Appointment: All of them are appointed by the Central Government for three years.
• Tenure: The maximum age to serve in commission is 65 years for Chairman and 60 years for members.
• Commission's mandate: to ensure that all laws, policies, programmes, and administrative mechanisms are in consonance with the child rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• Definition of Child: The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group.
• Power: It inquires into complaints relating to a child's right to free and compulsory education under the Right to Education Act, 2009.
• Function: It monitors the implementation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.
• It is also mandated to monitor the proper and effective implementation of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and Right to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009.