Changes to Juvenile Justice Act

Context: Amendments to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015 were approved by the government.

Concept:

According to the amendments, before anyone becomes a member of the child welfare committees (CWC), their background and educational qualification will be checked
Increasing the role of district magistrates and additional district magistrates in implementation of the law
In every district, the district magistrate and the additional district magistrate will get the power to monitor functions of agencies responsible for implementation of the Act. The district child protection unit will also function under the district magistrate
The district magistrate can independently evaluate a specialized CWC, juvenile police unit and registered institutions.
The scope of the Juvenile Justice Act has also been expanded. Child victims of trafficking and drug abuse and those abandoned by their guardians will be included in the definition of “child in need of care” and protection
A new category of offence will be added to three categories of petty, serious and heinous crimes. this is offences where the sentence is more than seven years but no minimum sentence is prescribed or a minimum sentence of less than seven years is provided shall be treated as serious offences under the Act