The police commissioner of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, S.K. Priyadarshi, said the prevention of child marriage and sexual abuse is a priority that should be addressed keeping the social and cultural values of Odisha in mind.

The commissioner was speaking on Monday after inaugurating the annual Kalinga Fellowship 2022 in the presence of delegates from India and abroad.

Emphasising the objectives of the UN’s sustainable development goals that call for ending gender violence, he said the psychosomatic challenges for victims cannot be adequately addressed without taking into account the social values.

The Kalinga Fellowship, which debuted in 2017, is a societal leadership platform to facilitate a breakthrough in thinking and strategy on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 5 which concerns gender equality.

The fellowship has been co-founded by the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), Bridge Institute UK and FXBIS (FXB India Suraksha).

Welcoming the delegates, Simon Mackenzie, Bridge Institute director, outlined the objective of his institute, which brings business, government, and civil society leaders together to solve the burning problems, preparing the leaders who want to change the world with the requisite leadership skills.

Jane Sassienie, client director of Bridge Institute, introduced the current edition agenda, calling for the delegates to freely interact with one another, focusing on the challenges ahead.

She advised the delegates to make the most of the knowledge and experience of the resource persons.

Vice-chancellor of KISS, Deepak Kumar Behera, stressed framing policies that take cognisance of customary practices coming in the way of rehabilitation of victims of child sexual abuse.