'Avoid taking children to crowded places'

Alappuzha: The Alappuzha district panchayat has decided to approach the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) to prevent parents from bringing young children to crowded places.
District panchayat president Pratibha Hari said mothers often take young children to crowded places and are also seen standing in queues at places of worship for hours with their babies.
"By doing this, parents create hardships for the young ones. Those who really care for children will not take them to crowded places. We have decided to approach the NHRC and CWC on this matter," Pratibha said.
"Children are often reported missing in crowded places. Our country has also witnessed several stampedes in which innocent children have lost their lives. Often, event organizers do not bother to arrange separate facilities for women and children.
"Recently a 15-month-old baby died when she fell off an escalator at a mall in Kochi. Why are babies taken to such places at all? Mothers should decide not to bring children to crowded places in view of their safety .I feel the human rights commission and the CWC can take effective steps in this regard," she said.
SHRC member R Natarajan lauded the move and said that the CWC should look into the matter. Meanwhile, Alappuzha CWC member M K Abdul Samad said no complaints have been received in this connection yet.