PRAYAGRAJ, April 5 -- The Uttar Pradesh Basic Shiksha Parishad (Uttar Pradesh Basic Education Council) has, for the first time, announced a statewide awareness campaign on the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, to protect and empower children with knowledge. The initiative, part of a newly released academic activity calendar, was unveiled on Friday by Parishad secretary Surendra Kumar Tiwari and will cover around 2.9 crore students from Classes 1 to 8.

Under this programme, children studying in primary, upper primary, composite schools and Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas will take part in structured, age-appropriate activities to help them understand personal safety, good and bad touch and the legal protecti...