NEW DELHI: Nobel peace laureate Kailash Satyarthi has warned that while being home bound during the lock down may make everyone feel safe, children at home, shelters and on the internet are at risk of sexual and online abuse and trafficking. He calls for caution to protect children from any kind of abuse during the lock down.

"We may feel safe in our homes during the COVID19 lockdown, but our children in homes, shelters and on the internet are at serious risk. There is a greater threat of sexual abuse, online abuse and trafficking. Let us come together and keep children safe at home," Satyarthi tweeted on Saturday.

To raise awareness about these issues and encourage people to look after children, Kailash Satyarthi Children's Foundation ( KSCF ) has now launched a countrywide campaign against child sexual abuse under the hastag #keepchildrensafeathome.

According to activists from KSCF, the campaign, currently being run online through social media, will also move to the ground once the lockdown is lifted, and will disseminate messages about child sexual abuse, laws related to it and how to keep children safe.

In its statement KSCF cites the National Crime Records Bureau 's 2018 Crime in India report to say that “40,810 children across India fell victim to different types of sexual offences the same year. Of these, 22,077 were raped. Shockingly, in 95 percent cases, the perpetrators were people -- family members, family friends and neighbours -- known to the victims. This certainly raises questions on the safety of children indoors.”

The KSCF team steering the campaign feels that the flight of hundreds of thousands of migrant labourers from the cities back to their villages, with their womenfolk and children in tow, poses a two-fold threat -- economic hardship and safety of the children. “While the labourers, especially those who may have reached their villages and those who will reach their native places once the lockdown is lifted, may find it extremely difficult to secure themselves when rural joblessness is expected to rise, the children could become easy targets for traffickers,” activists pointed.

