A district-level consultation aimed at strengthening preparedness on adolescent health issues was held in Jalpaiguri on Friday, bringing together key stakeholders from across North Bengal to address some of the most pressing challenges faced by young people aged 10-19.
West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights
A district-level consultation aimed at strengthening preparedness on adolescent health issues was held in Jalpaiguri on Friday, bringing together key stakeholders from across North Bengal to address some of the most pressing challenges faced by young people aged 10-19.
Organised by the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) in collaboration with the Jalpaiguri district administration, the programme at the Zilla Parishad auditorium focused on improving coordination and service delivery to ensure a more robust rights-based framework for adolescent well-being.
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Senior officials from the health, education and police departments, along with representatives of Child Care Institutions (CCIs), medical professionals, school authorities and NGOs, participated in the discussions.
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According to the commission, adolescent health remains a core pillar of child rights, requiring sustained, district-specific interventions. The consultation sought to review existing gaps in infrastructure and services, and to chart a practical roadmap for better convergence among government departments.
Key issues such as mental health vulnerabilities, access to counselling, menstrual hygiene, nutritional deficiencies, and reproductive health awareness featured prominently in the deliberations. Field-level experiences were also shared to highlight challenges in schools, health facilities and child protection institutions.
The consultation identified the following priority areas for action:
– Strengthening district-level preparedness to respond to adolescent health concerns
– Enhancing coordination among Education, Health, Police and Child Protection systems
– Developing district-specific recommendations for more accessible and sensitive adolescent health services
– Expanding awareness among frontline service providers
– Establishing a follow-up mechanism to monitor progress
Officials said the recommendations emerging from the session would help create a more responsive support system across districts and ensure that adolescent health—an area often overlooked—receives sustained institutional focus in the coming year.
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