According to the statement, the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) had launched the first issue of its journal 'Children First' in November 2021.?

The inaugural issue of the journal gave the opportunity to many researchers, academicians, child rights activists and others from the field of child rights to come together to a platform and share their opinions and research to help people understand the lives of children better, it stated.?

"To expand the horizon of the biannual journal and further strengthen its editorial capacities, Yamini Aiyar, the president and chief executive of CPR and Srikrishna Deva Rao, V-C and professor of law, National Law University, has consented to join the editorial board of the journal," the statement said.

?An expert researcher, Aiyar has published widely in academic publications and the popular press, it said, adding she writes regularly on current affairs and policy matters in mainstream Indian newspapers.

?"I'm absolutely delighted to join the editorial board. I believe the journal is an important platform to promote rigorous and cutting-edge policy research on the only issue that should matter to this great nation, the future well-being of our children. It is a privilege for me to be part of this journey" Aiyar said in the statement. The statement said Professor Rao has been instrumental in institutionalising legal aid and legal empowerment in India.

?"The DCPCR has been doing excellent work towards the protection and furtherance of child rights, and this journal reflects their desire that policy is informed by high-quality research and data, and to elevate the public discourse on these issues," Rao said.?

"These are worthy aims, and it is my privilege to be contributing to this, alongside some of the finest minds in the field," he was quoted as saying.

The forthcoming Issue of Children First Journal focuses on the 'Second year of COVID-19 pandemic: Disrupted childhoods, disrupted education and how it has significantly disrupted the childhoods and the education of children in the Indian context, it added.

With PTI inputs.