Thiruvananthapuram: The state government will not tolerate atrocities against children, and stringent action will be taken against the culprits, Minister for Health, Woman and Child Development Veena George said on Wednesday.

The state has taken the recent incident of the abuse of a toddler by three caretakers of the Kerala State Child Welfare Committee (CWC) under serious consideration, and Principal Secretary (women and child development) Sharmila Mary Joseph is carrying out a detailed probe, said the health minister. The principal secretary also visited the CWC and took stock of the activities there a day after the incident, reported PTI.

The health minister said the performance and service aptitude of all the caretakers of the CWC would be evaluated, and they would be retained in the service after being put through psychosocial analysis.

She added that police verification would also be done before appointing caretakers in the institution. Stating that it is not just another job, she said preference would be given to those who can care for children with motherly affection.

All the new appointments will be in accordance with these conditions, Veena George said. CWC general secretary G L Arun Gopi was also with the minister during the visit, an official statement read. 

 Police arrested three caretakers of the state Child Welfare Committee (CWC) for allegedly abusing a two-and-half-year-old inmate on Tuesday. The accused, Ajitha, Maheswari and Sindhu, were slapped with charges under POCSO and relevant sections of BNS.