Bhubaneswar: Even as public outrage over the gangrape and torture in Hathras continues to rock the nation, the state government Sunday informed the Assembly that six tribal girls from government schools managed by the SC/ST department became pregnant in the last five years and most of them also delivered babies at tender ages.
The data was furnished from the state government as a written statement in response to a query posed by an MLA on the issue. The government in its response claimed that strict actions were taken against the culprits in such cases.
The government also cited the enquiry reports in all the cases and talked about the actions taken against the culprits and steps taken by them to ensure welfare of the victims. The six cases were recorded in 2015, 2017 and 2019. Maximum of three cases were reported in 2019 alone.
The government claimed that in most cases the girls who became pregnant had physical relationship either with their relatives or fellow villagers. In one case a headmaster of the school was found guilty of sexually harassing a minor.
According to the details provided by the government, in 2015 a Class 10 tribal girl studying at a government school in Kandhamal delivered a baby after becoming pregnant in 2015. The enquiry report hinted at her relationship with a relative while spending her vacation at her village.
In the same year, another case was detected in an Asharam School in Koraput where a Class VI girl gave birth to a baby boy in the hostel. In this case too, the government attributed the pregnancy owing to her relationship with a fellow villager. While action was taken against the accused, the girl was given `1 lakh compensation.
In 2017, another case of a Class IX tribal girl reported sexual abuse by the headmaster of a girls’ high school in Koraput the school and delivered a baby. A case was filed against the accused, while the girl was paid a compensation of `2.35 lakh.
In 2019, three cases of pregnancy among tribals girls were reported from Daringbadi, Dhenkanal and Mayurbhanj. In these cases too, actions were initiated against the culprits, while compensations were paid to the girls.
