Parents in India’s capital will soon be able to watch their children in the classroom in real time, using a mobile phone app.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said CCTV will be installed in all government schools within three months.
Reviewed the progress of installation of CCTV cameras in each class in all govt schools. Each parent will be given access to see his child studying in class on realtime basis on his phone. This will make the whole system transparent and accountable. It will ensure safety of kids
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) January 17, 2018
He said he hoped the move would make schools “transparent and accountable”.
There is also a child safety motive. In September 2017, a young boy was found with his throat cut in a school bathroom.
Just days later, a five-year-old girl was raped at a school in the east of the capital.
While some parents welcomed the move, others called it “ridiculous” and a sign of “a surveillance society”.
“A real-time video tracker in schools will lead to policing of children not only to prevent crimes, but their moral choices and behaviour” one critic warned on Twitter.