India, Sept. 29 -- With concerns over rising molestation cases in schools, the Maharashtra government has put student safety under the scanner. Acting on a Bombay High Court directive, the state school education department has sent a 60-point questionnaire to all private, government, and aided schools, seeking detailed responses that will form part of a compliance report to be presented in court in the coming weeks.

The move stems from a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) being heard by a division bench of justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Sandesh Patil. The case was triggered by the Badlapur incident of May 13, 2024, when two young girls were sexually assaulted-a crime that shocked the state and highlighted how school authorities f...