Sibnath Deb, PhD
August 30, 2018Dr. Deb is the Dean (I/C) of the School of Law, Pondicherry University, and the Director (I/C) of the Directorate of Distance Education at the Pondicherry University in India. He holds a Ph.D. in Applied Psychology from the University of Calcutta. His research interests revolve around children and their rights. As a resource person, he participated in the formulation of rules of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act 2000. Two important issues were corporal punishment and lowering the age of juveniles from 16-18 years. Corporal punishment is widely practiced in India by both parents and teachers. After reviewing data regarding the safety of children in school, the committee agreed to ban corporal punishment under the Juvenile Justice Act. Regarding lowering the age limit of juveniles, thousands of orphan and/or destitute children and adolescents live on the street. Since they do not go to school they are vulnerable to unlawful activities. The 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape case in Delhi, where the main accused was under 18 and at the time tried in juvenile court, influenced the decision to repeal the old law and include youth of 16-18 years as adults.