LAMKA, April 8: The Juvenile Home, CCpur had received more than the149 juvenile cases between the age group of 13 to 16 in the month of February and March alone while there were only 202 cases in all in the last year. The statistic is alarmingly high among the college going student, said it by the convener of the Manipur Alliance for Child Right (MACR) CCpur Chapter, Rev Dr Nicky Thanga.
The MACR convener, who is also the head of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) of the district, said that majority of the cases were related with the consumption of toxic and substance abuse such as consumption of drug, alcohol, inhaling of dendrite, ganza etc. These boys were responsible for forming of junkies group in the form of Gang in the district whose members have been a concern to MACR CCpur Chapter.
Nicky further said that the problem of substance abuse starts from the family which had influenced the future of the child and added that parent should be role model and be meaningful in dealing with their children as they are the one to correct their kids.
Some of the youths lodged in the Juvenile Home are the children of policemen, government officers who were, in principle, thought or considered as one who will be best adapted to the problem but end up as the victim, Dr Nicky observed it and continued that the moral degradation of the youths begins from the family which is believed to be oldest institution in the world. Most of the juveniles who are in conflict with law are between the age group of 13 to 18 years, he further observed.
Referring to one attempted rape case by the people from outside the state, locally known as `Vaite` the MACR convener said that we considered them as our Christian brethren but we are setting a bad example to them as they had pollutes our society even to the extent of claiming that they belonged to UG`s group and terrorized the small shopkeepers and molested the girls in the district.
A theologian by profession Rev. Dr Nicky commented that with almost 99% of CCpur populace claiming to be Christian, where is we fear while respecting the God? He further told that the observatory has a counselling centre but could not look after more than 4 to 5 persons at one time as there is lack of fund and the govt`™s help and support is shortcoming.
The philanthropic organization, student union and the parent and the police as well as the UG`s and public leader  should open their eyes to this reality and do their part, Nicky said and added that the juvenile who are protected under Juvenile Justice Act must also know that they can`™t remain juvenile forever, and if they can`™t emend, their future will be in the prison.
The trend in CCpur, which is fast emerging as big town, seems to be overtaken by the juvenile problem which is in the verge of over taking the economic development for which a retrospection was called for to the people of CCpur, Nicky and added that we must act now before we are a looser while asking the people in general to support the Alliance to transform the district for our own good and benefit.