Bhubaneswar: The state government will launch a special programme, christened as Shaktishree, to ensure safety of girl students in colleges and universities in Odisha.

This was announced by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi today. The announcement came in the wake of self-immolation of a girl student of FM College in Balasore over alleged harassment by a faculty member recently.

The new programme will be implemented in all 16 universities and 730 government and aided colleges coming under the Higher Education Department of the state, said the Chief Minister.

The new programme will have eight aspects--Shaktisree empowerment cell, Shaktisree mobile app, code of conduct for faculty members, SAFE campaign, campus safety report, CCTV camera, online course and Shakti Swarupuni.

Under the scheme, a permanent Shaktisree empowerment cell will be opened in colleges and universities in the state. The cell will be managed by the girl students, said the Chief Minister.

A girl student, designated as Shaktisree Sathi, and a woman faculty member, designated as Shaktisree Coordinator, will manage the cell. The district Collector will nominate five eminent working women as ‘Shakti Apa’ to work as mentors to the girl students. The cell will work for the safety and empowerment of girl students and women faculty members and staff on the campuses, elaborated Majhi.

The authorities will launch Shaktisree mobile app for the safety of girl students on campuses. Details regarding the internal complaint committee (ICC) of the college or university and the contact details of its members will be made available in the app. Girls can register their complaints through texts and audio or video message through the mobile app, said the Chief Minister.

Girl students can also avail expert suggestions and advices for stress and anxiety through Shaktisree mobile app. They can press the SOS button in the app to get instant help during emergency situation, he added.

According to the Chief Minister, the Higher Education Department will introduce a special code of conduct for the teaching and non-teaching staff of the colleges and universities. The authorities will organise self-defence training programmes for girl students under the Shaktisree Actions for Female Empowerment (SAFE) campaign to create awareness on gender equality.

The higher education institutes will submit an annual report on safety measures introduced on the campuses to the state government. CCTV cameras will be installed on the premises of colleges and universities for round-the-clock surveillance, revealed Majhi.