The Public Works Department (PWD) in Delhi will install CCTV cameras in all classrooms run by the state government, and will provide the link to the parents and guardians of students so that they can view which subject is being taught in the classrooms and what their wards are doing, officials said on Tuesday, 5 July.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government had announced in 2019 that it would install CCTV cameras in all state-run schools and allow parents to view the live feed from their homes. They said that the goal behind this initiative was to increase the security of students.
The contract to supply, install, test, commission and maintain the CCTV cameras in government-run schools was given to the PWD, The Indian Express reported.
Parents to be Given Individual Login Details
Parents will be provided with individual and secure login details with separate IDs and passwords to view the live footage.
The PWD will also update the information of students and phone numbers of their parents in their software.
"In view of authorised access by parents and guardians only, the correctness of mobile number and student data is very important for secured live video feed to parents/guardians. As once the mobile number and students’ details are uploaded in the DGS App, login and password shall be generated automatically by the system and will be forwarded to registered mobile number," a government official said.
The AAP government also asked the heads of schools to get the consent of parents or guardians of all students. "After getting consents from the parents/guardians, the HoS will compile the student details in an excel format and submit it to the PWD which will upload the details in the software."
Warning Issued to Parents Against Misuse of Footage
Furthermore, only those parents who have signed the consent forms will get access to details of the live footage.
"The HoS of each school must decide the room number allotted to the classrooms in such a way that no change will be required throughout the year as any change in the classroom will lead to unauthorised access by parents and will need to be corrected in the data system before changing the classroom," the official was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
Schools have been asked to provide the data within 15 days. "Once the schools provide the data, the department will update all the data in the software and the links and live feed of children will be provided to particular parents/guardians accordingly," a PWD official said.
The government also issued a warning to parents against the misuse of the live footage, saying that parents will be required to assure officials that they will not share their individual passwords with anybody else.
"If any violation found or misuse of the CCTV video footage later on by me, suitable action may be taken against me as per Indian Law," the consent form to be signed by parents states.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
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