Section 24 in Tamil Nadu Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, 2017
24. Institutional management of children.
- The following procedure shall be followed in respect of the newly admitted children and thereafter, namely.-(a)the officer in charge of the child care institution shall interact with the child in a soft and polite manner and ensure that the child is not carrying with him any prohibited articles. Girl children shall be handled by female staff only;(b)the officer in charge of the child care institution shall then enter the name of the child in the admission register maintained for this purpose and allocate appropriate accommodation facility;(c)the photograph of the child shall be taken and affixed in the record maintained in the child care institution;(d)the officer-in-charge of the child care institution shall arrange for safe custody of the personal belongings of the child received by the institution and shall record the same in the personal belongings register maintained in the institution and the items shall be returned to the child at the time of leaving the institution. If there is a reasonable amount, the same may be deposited in a bank in the name of the child by nominating the officer in charge of the institution as guardian to fetch interest for the child;(e)the entries made in the 'personal belongings register', relating to each child shall be read over to the child in the presence of a witness, whose signature shall be obtained in token of the correctness of such entries and shall be countersigned by the officer-in-charge of the child care institution;(f)the officer-in-charge of the child care institution shall provide sanitary items, new set of clothes, bedding, tooth brush and other necessary items for each child;(g)each child shall be interviewed and a case file or profile prepared by the child welfare officers or social workers or counsellors attached to the child care institution or voluntary social workers or counsellors from outside. All information received shall be treated with strict confidentiality and shall be available only to the Officer-in-charge of the child care institution or the social worker or counsellor responsible for the maintenance of such records;(h)the child shall be familiarised with the child care institution and its functioning and shall be briefed on the following areas, namely,-(i)personal health, hygiene and sanitation;(ii)institutional discipline and standards of behaviour;(iii)daily routine, roles and responsibilities within the said institution;(i)a case history of the child admitted to an child care institution shall be maintained as per Form XX which shall contain information regarding his social-cultural and economic background and this information may be collected through all possible and available sources, including home, parents or guardians, employer, school, friends and community;(j)a pre-discharge and rehabilitation programmes shall be prepared before the discharge of the child. The assistance of voluntary welfare organisations may also be taken up for preparation of the plan;(k)in the event of a child leaving the child care institution without permission or committing the offence within the said institution, the information shall be sent by the Officer-in-charge of the concerned institution to the local police and the family, if known. A detailed report of circumstances along with the efforts to trace the child shall also be sent to the Board or Committee, as the case may be;(l)an individual care plan for every child in the child care institution shall be developed with the ultimate aim to rehabilitate and re-integrate the child based on the case history, circumstances and individual needs. Individual care plan shall be based on the following guidelines, namely,-(i)the officer-in-charge, counsellor along with the child welfare officer shall prepare an individual care plan for every child in an institution within one month of his admission as per Form - V;(ii)the care plan shall include a plan for the restoration, rehabilitation, reintegration and follow-up of the child;(iii)the care plan shall be reviewed on a quarterly basis by the Management Committee for appropriate development and rehabilitation including options for release or restoration to family or foster care or adoption;(iv)the individual care plan shall take into consideration the views of the child;(v)continuity of care plan shall be ensured in cases of transfer of a child to another child care institution;(m)the minimum standards for a child care institution prescribed by the Government shall be ensured from time to time;(n)no child shall be subjected to corporal punishment or any mental harassment including being subjected to humiliating behaviour affecting the dignity and worth of the child.
