What is the POCSO Act, and how is child sexual abuse reported in Odisha?

What the POCSO Act covers

The POCSO Act explained in one line: it is a special law, in force since 2012 and strengthened in 2019, that treats any sexual offence against a child, meaning any person below 18 years of age, as a serious crime, and builds the whole process around the child's safety and dignity. The Act is gender-neutral: it protects boys and girls alike. It applies across Odisha alongside the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS), which replaced the IPC and CrPC from 1 July 2024.

The Act defines several categories of offence, including penetrative and non-penetrative sexual assault, "aggravated" forms (for example, where the offender is a police officer, teacher, relative or person in a position of trust or authority), sexual harassment, and using a child for pornographic material. Many offences carry minimum sentences, which were raised by the 2019 amendment. This guide does not go into the details of the offences; the focus here is on what to do, and how the child is protected.

The legal duty to report (Sections 19 to 21)

Reporting is not optional under POCSO. Under Section 19, any person, including a child, who apprehends that an offence is likely to be committed, or knows that one has been committed, must inform the Special Juvenile Police Unit (SJPU) or the local police. This includes parents, neighbours, teachers, doctors, hostel wardens and staff of hospitals, hotels and studios (Section 20 places a specific duty on media, studio and photographic facilities).

• Failure to report is punishable with imprisonment of up to six months, fine, or both. A person in charge of a company or institution (such as a school or hostel) who fails to report an offence concerning a subordinate faces up to one year and fine (Section 21). A child is not punished for not reporting.
• A person who reports in good faith is protected from civil and criminal liability (Section 19(7)).
• Making a false complaint solely to humiliate, extort, threaten or defame is a separate offence (Section 22), but a child who makes a false complaint is not punished.

How to report child sexual abuse in Odisha

1. Make the child safe first. If there is immediate danger or a need for medical care, call 112 (Emergency Response Support System). The child helpline 1098 is available day and night and is now linked with 112.
2. Go to the nearest police station, or contact the SJPU of the district police. An FIR must be registered; it can be given at any police station, which must register it and transfer it if needed (Zero FIR under Section 173 BNSS). See how to file an FIR in Odisha.
3. The police must record the report in writing, in simple language the child understands, with an interpreter if needed, and read it over to the informant.
4. Within 24 hours the police must arrange care and protection for the child where needed (shelter or hospital) and report the matter to the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) of the district and to the Special Court (Section 19(5) and (6)).
5. Online sexual material involving a child can also be reported on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal; see cyber crime complaints in Odisha.

Recording the child's statement and medical examination

POCSO sets out how the child's statement must be taken (Sections 24 to 26). In outline: the statement is recorded at the child's home or a place of the child's choice, as far as practicable by a woman police officer not below the rank of sub-inspector; the officer should not be in uniform; the child must not be kept at a police station at night or brought into contact with the accused; and a parent or another person the child trusts may be present. The Magistrate may also record the child's statement, with the help of an interpreter or special educator if needed.

A medical examination is done with consent, in the presence of a parent or another person the child trusts; for a girl, it is done by a woman doctor (Section 27). Under the POCSO Rules, 2020, a child needing urgent medical care must be taken to the nearest hospital, and no hospital may refuse emergency treatment or demand an FIR or a Magistrate's requisition first.

Special Courts and child-friendly trial

POCSO cases are tried by Special Courts designated for each district (Section 28). In Odisha these are Sessions-level courts in every district, and fast-track special courts have been set up for sexual offence and POCSO cases. The Act requires:

• Trial in camera (not in open court), in the presence of the child's parent or a person the child trusts (Section 37).
• The child is not exposed to the accused while testifying; the court may use video links, screens or one-way mirrors (Section 36).
• Questions to the child go through the judge; the court may allow frequent breaks and must prevent aggressive questioning or attacks on character (Section 33).
• The child's evidence should be recorded within 30 days of cognizance and the trial completed, as far as possible, within one year (Section 35).
• An interpreter, translator or special educator may assist a child with a disability (Section 38).

Under Section 29 the court presumes the accused committed the offence unless the contrary is proved, in prosecutions for the main offences. Anticipatory bail is not available where the accusation is rape of a girl under 18 under Section 65 or 70(2) BNS (Section 482(4) BNSS). For an overview of trial stages see the criminal trial process in Odisha.

Privacy: the child's identity must stay protected

No newspaper, channel, website or social media user may disclose the child's name, address, photograph, school, family details or neighbourhood, or anything else that could identify the child (Section 23). The Special Court too must keep the child's identity confidential throughout (Section 33(7)). Violating this is punishable. Families should avoid sharing details or images on WhatsApp or social media, even when asking for help.

Support for the child and family

• Support person: the Child Welfare Committee may appoint a support person, with the consent of the child and parent, to help through the investigation and trial (Rule 4 of the POCSO Rules, 2020).
• Legal help: the family may engage an advocate, and free legal aid is available through the District Legal Services Authority; see free legal aid in Odisha.
• Compensation: the Special Court can order interim compensation at any stage after the FIR for the child's relief and rehabilitation, and final compensation at the end of the case, even where the accused is acquitted or not traced (Section 33(8) and Rule 9). The State Government must pay within 30 days of the order.
• Counselling and shelter: through the District Child Protection Unit and the CWC under the Odisha Women and Child Development Department.
• The Odisha State Commission for Protection of Child Rights monitors how the Act is implemented.

Compensation and support for survivors in Odisha are explained in the rights of sexual offence survivors in Odisha.

When the accused is also a child

If the person accused is below 18, the case goes to the Juvenile Justice Board under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, not to an ordinary trial (Section 34). See the Juvenile Justice Act and children in conflict with law. Matters handled in this area are listed on the criminal practice area page, and courts are listed under courts.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (India Code)
• Ministry of Women and Child Development: POCSO Rules, 2020
• Women and Child Development Department, Government of Odisha
• Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (India Code)
• Odisha State Legal Services Authority

General information, not legal advice. Every matter turns on its own facts and documents, and the law and official procedures change. Check the current position with the concerned office, or take advice on your own facts, before acting.