The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Protest against easy availability of acid

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Sep 10, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Protest against easy availability of acid

Staff Reporter

BANGALORE: The Campaign and Struggle Against Acid Attacks on Women (CSAAW) on Saturday staged a protest demanding that the Government take action to restrict the sale of acid in the State.

In a memorandum addressed to Minster for Women and Child Welfare H.K. Kumaraswamy, CSAAW stated that no control on the availability and the lack of definition of safe concentration levels of acid had meant that women were increasingly susceptible to acid attacks.

“Over-the-counter and door-to-door sale of acid must be stopped. The level of toxicity in the acid sold must also be regulated,” said Sushma Verma of CSAAW. Even though it had been over a year since the High Court of Karnataka directed the Government to set up a committee to frame a comprehensive rehabilitation package for acid attack victims, no further action had been taken in this regard, she said. “The only announcement is that Rs. 1crore has been sanctioned to look into relief and rehabilitation aspects. We have not heard anything else,” Ms. Verma said. Since the High Court order, three women, including Hina Fathima from Mysore, and Hemalatha from Bijapur, died in acid attacks, she said.

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