(April 28, 2010) Church people and human rights activists in India’s eastern Orissa
State have welcomed a police clampdown on sex tourism in the coastal town of Puri.
“We welcome it. But a circular alone would not end the menace,” Father Bijaya Pradhan,
who heads the Child Commission of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar archdiocese, told UCA News April
25. Five days earlier, the Orissa state police asked some 200 hotels in Puri not to
let minor boys stay in rooms with tourists, especially foreigners, and warned of stringent
actions if they ignored the order. Debasis Rath of the Childline of Child Welfare
Committee, an NGO, laments that Puri has become “the hub of male-child abuses.” Puri
town’s Jagnnath (the lord of the universe) Temple attracts thousands of tourists throughout
the year. “Most tourists, who indulge in child abuse, are foreigners. Rath says proving
child abuse is tough because victims do not file charges. He has urged the administration
to closely monitor mushrooming health clubs, massage parlours and hostels. His group
plans to launch a campaign against child abuse in these places.