RAJOURI: The National Development Foundation (NDF), Jammu, in collaboration with the District Child Protection Unit (DCPU), Rajouri, and in partnership with UNICEF India, successfully organized a Platform Sharing Programme Chatiar and Sawni strengthen child protection mechanisms and raise awareness among communities about their vital role in safe-guarding children.

More than 150 participants including community, youth and children were sensitized on key child protection issues, the functioning of the protection system, and the importance of collective responsibili-ty in preventing child abuse, neglect, and exploitation. The programme began with a wel-come and context-setting session by Nisha Pandita, Programme Officer, NDF, introduced the objectives of the initiative and highlighted the importance of community-level coordination to ensure children's safety and well-being. Sunny Kumar, Programme Manager, NDF, in his address, highlighted the vari-ous child protection laws. He emphasized the responsibili-ties of the community, families, and institutions in identifying and reporting child related issues through proper channels. Amit Sharma and Arundeep Team Member NDF were also present.

Community members such as Captain Joginder Singh, Nater Prakash, Mohd. Akram and Social Activist Kishore Kumar also spoke during the programme, sharing insights on local child related challenges such as school dropout, child labour, and early marriage.