Dhaka, Feb 25 (UNB) – The Cabinet on Monday approved the draft of the ‘Child Bill, 2013’ keeping provisions of various punitive measures including maximum five years’ jail or Tk 100,000 as fine for violence against child.

The approval was given at the regular weekly meeting of the Cabinet held at the Bangladesh Secretariat with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

Briefing newsmen after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said that the Cabinet approved the “comprehensive law” taking national and internal perspectives into consideration to make the law time befitting.

The existing law on child was enacted in 1974 while Bangladesh ratified the UN Child Rights Charter in 1990. The new law has been proposed to ensure development and flourishing of children, establishing and preserving child rights, and ensure their welfare.

Terming the proposed law as time befitting and epoch making, Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said the proposed law with 100 sections defined ‘child’ as up to 18 years.

Other punitive measures provided for in the proposed law are maximum five years’ jail or Tk 100,000 as fine for forcing children into begging and leading them to go astray and maximum three years’ jail or Tk 100,000 lakh as fine for supplying arms or drugs to children.

The Cabinet Secretary said that under the proposed law, Child Welfare Boards will be constituted both at national and local level and there will be child desks in every police station under the supervision of a sub-inspector.

Besides, separate child courts will be constituted in district and metropolitan areas, he added.

The Cabinet meeting also approved the draft of the ‘Bangladesh Film and Television Institute Bill, 2013’ to set up a dedicated institute aimed at flourishing the film industry and improving the TV programmes.

Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan informed that the aim of the institute will be to create skilled, trained and worthy producers, artistes and others working in the field of making films and TV programmes.

He said that the institute will be an autonomous body to be run by a governing board headed by a chairman. The Information Secretary or an eminent television or film personality will be made its chairman.

The 18-member governing body of the institute will comprise representatives from various ministries, institutions like Bangladesh Television (BTV), Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (FDC), NIMCO, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, two university teachers, five eminent personalities and one journalist.

The Cabinet Secretary informed that the Information Ministry prepared the draft of the `Bangladesh Film and Television Institute Bill, 2013’ after consultation with all stakeholders and taking opinions of concerned ministries and departments through inter- ministerial meetings.

He said the Cabinet gave nod to the draft of the bill taking the necessity of the law into consideration as well as the long-standing demand of the artists, filmmakers and others concerned for establishing a film institute in the country.

Musharraf Bhuiyan said that the institute will be a statutory body which will provide training and award degrees to the producers and artists, and also conduct researches.

The cabinet also gave post facto approval to the agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders between Bangladesh and Belarus.

Ministers, Advisers to the Prime Minister, State Ministers and Secretaries concerned attended the meeting.