Silchar: The district administration used Wednesday’s stakeholder consultation in Silchar to push for a sharper, collective approach to digital safety. The meeting, held as part of the 16 Days Campaign to End Violence Against Women, brought together key departments and organisations working with women and children.

District Commissioner Mridul Yadav opened the discussion by saying that digital spaces now shape daily life as much as physical ones. He noted that women and children often face the highest risks online and argued that a strong prevention plan paired with fast, coordinated response systems is the only way to protect them.

Here’s what he underscored. Prevention has to start early, and it has to happen at home, in schools, and within communities. Families need digital literacy. Children should learn to spot risky interactions, misleading links, or unusual behaviour online. Teachers, parents, and field workers need to stay alert and offer guidance before problems escalate.

The response side, he said, must be equally firm. Cyberbullying, online harassment, phishing, and financial frauds continue to rise, yet many victims do not recognise the threat or hesitate to report it. He pressed departments to take every complaint seriously and ensure it reaches the police, legal services, counsellors, or child protection units as required.

Yadav also drew a link between digital misuse and social issues like elopement and child marriage, explaining that many cases start with unsupervised online conversations. He pushed for wider awareness drives, better monitoring tools, and structured sensitisation programmes across the district.

He made it clear that digital safety cannot be handled by one department alone. Police, Women and Child Development officials, DLSA, DCPU, the Education Department, NGOs, CWC, OSC, and other partners must stay in constant communication if the district is to build a safer online environment.

Calling digital protection a key part of modern governance, he urged all stakeholders to keep pace with evolving online risks rather than simply reacting to them. He said the goal is to empower every individual, especially women and children, to navigate the digital world with confidence.

The event was organised by the Sankalp Hub for Empowerment of Women under the Women and Child Development Department. Assistant Commissioner Anjali Kumari, who also serves as the in-charge District Social Welfare Officer, was present along with representatives from the Police Department, Health, ASRLM, DLSA, the Local Complaint Committee under POSH, NGOs, CWC, OSC, and several district-level units.

Discussions ranged from digital threats and legal protections to financial safety and workplace rights under POSH 2013. By the end, departments had a clearer sense of each other’s roles and left with a stronger, coordinated plan to address cyber risks across Cachar.