HRT HELP LINE - THE HINDU NEWS

Online edition of India's National Newspaper Saturday, Jul 10, 2010 ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

New Delhi

News: ePaper | Front Page | National | Tamil Nadu | Andhra Pradesh | Karnataka | Kerala | New Delhi | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous | Engagements | Advts: Retail Plus | Classifieds | Jobs | Obituary | New Delhi    A new helpline for victims of caste violence Bindu Shajan Perappadan NEW DELHI: Standing up for the youth of the country living under the fear of being murdered in the name of “honour”, doctors, engineers, scholars and socialists from various educational institutes including the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi University, Indian Institute of Technology and Jawaharlal Nehru University have come together to set up a 24-hour helpline offering support to victims of this heinous crime. “This pro-active group has a dedicated round-the-clock helpline number, e-mail and postal support,” said team member Dr. Ashu Kumar from AIIMS on Friday. “Through this group we are keen to work with the local public and administration. There is also a need to create a legal helpline for threatened individuals. We want to save every individual who is threatened and appeal to the public to join us in the endeavour,'' he said. Numbers at service The group, ‘Human Rescue Team', has put forward the initial helpline numbers -- 09891082658, 09015216082, 09650537374 -- and e-mail: aiims.ashu@gmail.com. “The people who have dared to swim against the tide have been attacked by extremists brutally. We have to reach out to them. Moreover, the law has to become stringent with such criminals. Another important area is arrangement of counselling for such families who come under the influence of social extremists and exercise brutality on their own loved ones. The media and local activists too play a very important role in spreading the message,” noted a release issued by the group. The group is working to create awareness against social evils that are caste-based. “According to rough statistics, about a thousand young people have been killed for saving the honour of castes in the last year in the country and the number, along with the cruelty of these murders, seems to be ever increasing,'' added Dr. Ashu.