- In this Act unless the context otherwise requires-(a)"begging" means-(i)soliciting or receiving alms in a public place or entering on any private premises for the purpose of soliciting or receiving alms, whether under the pretence of singing, dancing, fortune telling, performing tricks or otherwise;(ii)exposing or exhibiting with the object of obtaining or extorting alms on any sore, wound, injury deformity or disease, whether of himself or of any other persons or of an animal;(iii)allowing oneself to be used as an exhibit for the purpose of soliciting or receiving alms;(b)"Board" means a Child Welfare Board constituted under Section 4;(c)"brothel", "prostitute", "prostitution" and "public place" shall have the same meanings as are respectively assigned to them in the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act, 1956 (104 of 1956);(d)"child" means a boy or a girl who has not attained the age of sixteen years or eighteen years, respectively as the case may be;(e)"Children's Court" means a Court constituted under Section 5;(f)"children's home" means an institution established or certified by the State Government under Section 9 as a children's home;(g)"competent authority" means, in relation to neglected children a Board constituted under Section 4 and, in relation to delinquent children a Children's Court constituted under Section 5, and where no such Board or Children's Court has been constituted includes any Court empowered under sub-section (3) of Section 7 to exercise the powers conferred on a Board or Children's Court;(h)"dangerous drug" shall have the meaning assigned to it in the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1930 (2 of 1930);(i)"delinquent child" means a child who has been found to have committed an offence;(j)"guardian" in relation to a child includes any person who, in the opinion of the competent authority having cognizance of any proceeding in relation to a child, has, for the time being, the actual charge of or control over, that child;(k)"neglected child" means a child who-(i)is found begging; or(ii)is found without having any home or settled place of abode or any ostensible means of subsistence or is found destitute, whether he is an orphan or not; or(iii)has a parent or guardian who is unfit or unable to exercise or does not exercise proper care and control over the child; or(iv)lives in a brothel or with a prostitute or frequently goes to any place used for a purpose of prostitution, or is found to associate with any prostitute or any other person who leads an immoral, drunken or polluted life; or(v)has his father, mother or guardian in prison or in any custodial correctional institution under any law for any duration and he or she is unable to insure a proper growth and development of the child;(l)"observation home" means any institution or place established or recognised by the State Government under Section 11 as an observation home;(m)"offence" means an offence punishable under any law for the time being in force;(n)"prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;(o)"probation officer" means an officer appointed as a probation officer under this Act or under the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958 (20 of 1958);(p)"special school" means an institution established or certified by the State Government under Section 10 as a special school.(q)"supervision" in relation to a child placed under the care of any parent, guardian or other fit person under this Act, means the supervision, of that child by a probation officer for the purpose of ensuring that the child is properly looked after and that the conditions imposed by the competent authority are complied with;(r)'fit person" means-(i)a person or an institution found fit by the competent authority to receive and take care of a child entrusted to its care and protection on terms and conditions to be prescribed by the competent authority;(ii)a place of safety other than the above where a child may be lodged by the competent authority while his case is being processed.(iii)under no circumstances 'fit person' or place of safety will mean a police station, lockup or an adult jail; and(s)all words and expressions used but not defined in this Act and defined in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) shall have the meanings assigned to them in that Code.
