Thiruvananthapuram, July 26 (UNI) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday launched the ‘Koottu’ program at Cotton Hills Girls High School, the largest girls’ school in Asia. The program is initiated by Cyberdome and it aims to spread awareness of cyber safety among the kids and school students of the State. The program is a joint initiative of Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) and the state government to stop the rising incidents of online child pornography and online crimes against children, a release said.
Rajni Sekhri Sibal, CEO of BBA was the guest of honor at the launch ceremony along with Rakhi Ravi Kumar, Councillor of Vazhuthacaud, and Fr. Vincent, principal of Cotton Hill Girls High School.
The Koottu program was also graced by Manoj Abraham, IPS, Director Vigilance & Anti Corruption Bureau, the leadership of Anil Kant, IPS, state police chief, Prakash, IPS, Inspector General of Police, south zone, Jeevan Babu K, IAS, Director of General Education, Vijay Pamarathi, Head, Trust and Safety in Meta. Nishanthini, IPS, Director General of Police de- livered the vote of thanks at the ceremony. The Koottu program will be implemented by Cyberdome and the state police, in support of Counter Child Sexual Exploitation (CCSE), Childline, Meta (Facebook), Inker Robotics, MAC Labs, IMA, and the non-governmental organization Bodhini.
This program will include seminars, workshops, and exhibitions at various locations and is expected to be attended by schools and other educational institutions, and resident’s associations. As part of its efforts to raise awareness and create online tools and systems to stop the growing threat of online child sexual exploitation, BBA is collaborating and providing active support to the Kerala government.
BBA is supporting the state government in financ- ing the acquisition of technical support including hardware and software to create an online anti-traffick- ing and anti-sexual abuse system. The program entailed conducting workshops and seminars on advanced robotics, online games, and learning modules to train children regarding cyber safety and protection.
Speaking at the function, Vijayan said “Kerala has attained literacy way back. Now, Kerala is on its way to acquiring digital knowledge”. He congratulated BBA for working with Kerala Police, cyber dome, and other organizations.“The need to have correct knowledge regarding cyberspace and its implementation is very essential, and the joint effort can only help in making cyberspace a better for the children”, said Vijayan.Rajni Sekhri Sibal, CEO of BBA said, “Koottu Project is a huge step.
Kerala has come far ahead in cyber safety and usage, and it’s time Kerala role model states like Maharastra”.Sibal further added, “During covid, the data of child abuse rose to 85 million and usage rose to 100 percent in some states of India.
