Heavy rainfall in Hubballi causes severe damage to vehicles and property; one feared dead
HUBBALLI: The heavy rainfall that lashed Hubballi city on Wednesday night caused massive flooding, followed by traffic snarls and water gushing into several households.
A resident from Nekar Nagar is feared dead as he slipped into the flooding drain on Wednesday night, said the family members. Based on the information, the men from the fire and WME services and police have begun the search.
As per the locals, Hussain Kalas, aged around 45-50, was riding pillion with his friend.
Despite warnings from the locals, the duo went ahead. When the rider slipped into a pothole, he lost balance and Hussain fell into the drain. Efforts to retrieve him from the locals went in vain.
The rains began during the evening hours on Wednesday and continued till midnight. The old Pune Bengaluru highway along Unkal lake in Hubballi was the worst affected as several cars and two-wheelers got stranded in the floodwaters.
The passengers had to wait it out in their cars. This caused traffic jam, and the vehicles used diversions.
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The distinction between establishing the commission of a crime and proving the identity of the offender needs to be understood on paper and in practice by our judicial system. Another issue is that the POCSO Special Courts are often hesitant in awarding compensation. The common reasons flagged include doubts regarding alleged falsity of complaints, coupled with the victim's turning hostile during trials. International framework on POCSO Compensation Interestingly, Countries like United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia have adopted a uniform and standardised scheme of compensation that is completely independent of conviction or the trial outcome. The process triggers automatically upon registration of the case, as opposed to manual filing in India. In United States and Australia, compensation also includes long-term counselling, education, relocation, vocational support with mental therapy, health care and other welfare benefits. Way Ahead Over time, India's efforts are reflective of developing a robust legal framework to protect sexual assault victims and support their rehabilitation and reintegration. Nearly 13 years after the enactment of the POCSO Act, the nation still falls short of fulfilling a basic promise to its children—the right to fair and time-bound compensation for victims of sexual offences. The glaring inadequacies in the current victim compensation framework call for urgent reforms to ensure justice and meaningful support for survivors. A National and Uniform POCSO Victim Compensation Scheme must be notified, based on the 2019 Draft, with comprehensive coverage for psychological therapy, trauma counselling, residential support, and educational rehabilitation. A Centralised Compensation Portal, integrated with the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) and National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG[9]), should be established to enable real-time transparency in disbursal timelines. Courts must award compensation based on the nature and severity of harm, irrespective of the trial's outcome. Interim compensation—set at 25 per cent of the final amount—must be determined and disbursed within 30 days of the FIR, while final compensation must be awarded immediately after the victim's testimony, which should be recorded within 60 days of the chargesheet. A nationwide POCSO Victim Compensation Scheme is not just overdue—it's a constitutional and moral imperative. Rehabilitation is a process through which a victim turns into a survivor. For a victim to wait indefinitely to access this fundamental right is a colossal travesty of justice. Yet, when the state fails to fulfil this cardinal duty, would this not amount to a breach of its constitutional obligation as parens-patriae; the protector of children in distress? (Rachna Tyagi, is a General Counsel at Just Rights for Children and Partner Ethicus Legal and Consulting Solutions).
