18th day of June 2025 | By Team Ekaki Noi
Today Ekaki Noi took a deeper step into the heart of community engagement. At a time when conversations around child safety, legal awareness, and mental health are more crucial than ever, we brought our mission to a government-run residential school for girls in Naktala, Kolkata, to listen, share, and build safer spaces together. This outreach focused on empowering young minds and their guardians with essential knowledge and support systems to help build safer homes and healthier emotional environments.
Building Safe Spaces Through Community Engagement
Our multidisciplinary team—comprising a psychologist, two advocates, and a social worker—spent the day conducting structured, compassionate sessions with children, parents, and educators. The goal? To spark awareness, foster resilience, and introduce both emotional and legal tools for protection and healing.
We held four impactful sessions:
- With over 40 parents, including guardians of special needs children.
- With students from classes 3 and 4, who are just beginning to understand the world around them.
- With our youngest group—classes 1 and 2—introducing them to the concepts of personal safety and trusted adults.
- And with caregivers of special children, offering insight into their unique rights and challenges.
Educating Children on Safe Touch and Saying “No”
For students, our child-sensitive sessions focused on:
- Safe vs. unsafe touch
- Saying “no” without fear
- Identifying trustworthy adults
- Expressing feelings safely
These early conversations around body autonomy and consent are essential for child protection, and were delivered in a language children could relate to and remember.
Legal Awareness on POCSO and Domestic Violence
With parents and caregivers, we facilitated vital discussions on how the law protects children and women in domestic spaces:
- We educated them about the POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences)—its scope, procedures, and the role of mandatory reporting.
- We also highlighted the provisions and remedies under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, emphasizing how legal aid, mental health care, and emotional literacy together can build safe, respectful family environments.
Our sessions encouraged open dialogue, clarified doubts, and helped break the stigma around seeking legal or psychological help.
Mental Health and Legal Empowerment Go Hand in Hand
At Ekaki Noi, we strongly believe that mental well-being, legal awareness, and community solidarity are the three pillars of true safety. We did not arrive to fix anyone’s life. We came to walk beside them, offering support, guidance, and hope.
A Long-Term Commitment to Child Protection and Family Safety
This initiative is just the beginning. Through sustained outreach, we aim to:
- Educate children about personal safety and boundaries.
- Equip parents with legal literacy and emotional tools.
- Provide on-ground support for those navigating trauma, neglect, or abuse.
- Build a network of schools and communities that actively prioritize child protection.
Because we believe one truth above all:
No one should feel unsafe in the place they call home.