Kudumbashree Snehitha Extension Centres are being set up in all DySP and ACP offices in the state. The aim of the project is to provide necessary counselling services to women and children who come to police stations as victims of various atrocities. Counselling services will be provided based on the needs of the complainants and the importance of the case, taking into account the instructions of the police. For this, eighty-four community counsellors working under Kudumbashree have been selected. The state-level training of the first batch, comprising twenty-five of them, has begun in Thiruvananthapuram.
Currently, Snehitha Extension Centres are functioning in seven selected police stations in the state. The plan is to extend the scheme to all DySP and ACP offices across the state by the second week of March in a similar manner.
In the first phase, counselling services will be provided for two days a week. If those who come for counselling need more support, a system will be prepared to provide it. In addition, expert mental health treatment will be ensured through a referral system. The scheme will help complainants to speak out and get the necessary support without fear.
If there is no space available for Snehitha Extension Centres to function in the police stations currently under the jurisdiction of DySP and ACP offices, other convenient police stations within the subdivision limits will be found for this purpose. The basic facilities for providing counseling services will also be provided.
The Snehitha Gender Help Desk is a Kudumbashree organization that works to provide necessary legal aid, temporary accommodation and counseling to women and children who are victims of violence. Snehitha is currently operating in fourteen districts and Attappadi.
