Citizens' support needed to end menace of child abuse: DGP

Hyderabad: The Telangana police chief on Wednesday appealed to citizens to firmly oppose attacks on children and their sexual harassment and take a solemn pledge to end the social menace.

DGP Anurag Sharma called upon them to cooperate with police and support them in their endeavour to stop abuse of children.

He was addressing school children from the city, who took out a rally to highlight the issue of violence/ill-treatment of kids and protest sexual attacks on them.

Tennis star Sania Mirza, who is brand ambassador of Telangana, and State Home Secretary Ajay Mishra flagged off the rally.

The DGP advised students, their relatives, teachers and intellectuals to publicly debate the issue and spread awareness about it.

This battle is not to be fought by teenagers alone, but by the entire society. Senior police officials will be available to help you and support you in fight against the social malaise, he said.

Children should immediately get in touch with police by calling a toll-free number (1098) in case they are in trouble and need help, Sharma said.

Mirza said the children should be made aware of 'good touch and bad touch' by strangers and even friends and relatives through proper counselling and workshops.

Victims of child abuse should alert family members, teachers and friends about wrong done to them and not hide in embarrassment or be scared of any threat, Mirza said. She said media should also play a constructive role in curbing this criminal trend.