ORDER Juvenile delinquency is essentially a sociological problem. Quite often factors such as poor living conditions, bad environments, the stress and strain at home and the breakdown of peaceful marital life of the parents sow the seed for moral degeneration in the child during its impressionable age and distorted moral and social values are inculcated while the child grows into adolescence. In the case of such children it would be true to say that society prepares the crime for them to commit. The reformatory process envisaged in the concept of a period of detention in the Borstal School will not be effective unless after release from the Borstal School the adolescent could find for himself a respectable berth in society. Therefore it is of the essence of such detention that it should be accompanied by a period of training in crafts, trades or arts which would equip the offender to adjust himself in after-prison life. One of us, the Acting Chief Justice, on his visit to the Borstal School on the 8th of January of this year was told by the inmates that there is scarcely any facility for such training intended to rehabilitate them. There are some there who, for instance, would like to take to the avocation of a tailor but not even a sewing machine is provided. We are mentioning this here only to alert the Home Department of the Government to bestow kind and compassionate atten-tion to the Borstal School, as the Government is in law bound to, particularly with a view to consider what rehabilitative training could be introduced in the Borstal School at the earliest. 2. For the present we are concerned with what we should do to Viswanathan Nair, who is released from the Borstal School yesterday and who is before us today He has to be rehabilitated. In the absence of any Governmental machinery for this purpose voluntary philanthropic and service organisation can alone be the answer. We had thrown out an invitation to such organisations to come to the assistance of Viswanathan Nair. There has been response. The earliest of them, that from the Rotary Club of Trivandrum, has been conveyed through Sri Venugopal C. Govind, Past Rotary Governor, of Messrs. Varma & Varma, Chartered Accountants. We had thrown out an invitation to such organisations to come to the assistance of Viswanathan Nair. There has been response. The earliest of them, that from the Rotary Club of Trivandrum, has been conveyed through Sri Venugopal C. Govind, Past Rotary Governor, of Messrs. Varma & Varma, Chartered Accountants. It has been promised that the Rotary Club of Trivandrum will find suitable employment for him and will also keep an over all watch over his conduct so that for the one year he is under probation regular reports may be called for from the Club by this Court. The District Probation Officer, Trivandrum is also directed to make quarterly reports to the Court about Sri Viswanathan Nair. We wish him well and do hope that this experiment in persuading social service agencies to take on the responsibility of rehabilitation of such adolescent offenders will be a success, a success which may prompt them to offer more of their attention to similar work in regard to prisoners released from jails. Sri Viswanathan Nair is directed to contact Sri S. Kumar, Past Rotary Governor, (Ruksh Villa, Sastha mangalam, Trivandrum-10), who will make necessary arrangements in the matter of his rehabilitation programme. Subamonian Poti, Ag. C.J.-The Superintendent, Borstal School, Cannanore, forwarded to this Court six petitions from the inmates of the School for necessary action. One of these petitions, that by one Viswanathan Nair, was taken up by us separately because that called for immediate attention and orders. We directed that the adolescent offender Viswanathan Nair be produced before us today. Accordingly he was produced and we heard him. In the meanwhile on his petition we have taken on suo motu revision the decision in C.C.No. 203 of 1978 before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Trivandrum, a case in which he stands convicted to Rigorous Imprisonment for one year under section 454 , rigorous imprisonment for 6 months under section 380 , Indian Penal Code and rigorous imprisonment for 6 months under section 461 of the Indian Penal Code. Though he was so sentenced the terms of imprisonment have not begun to run. This was because of certain circumstances to which we will refer here. 2. Evidently the petitioner Viswanathan Nair ran into bad company early in life. In company with two others he indulged in theft and occasionally theft accompanied by house breaking. Ultimately he and his friends were apprehended. This was because of certain circumstances to which we will refer here. 2. Evidently the petitioner Viswanathan Nair ran into bad company early in life. In company with two others he indulged in theft and occasionally theft accompanied by house breaking. Ultimately he and his friends were apprehended. Cases were charged. There were 9 cases so charged, most of the cases being so charged on the basis of information leading to discovery of things stolen. In C.C.No. 175 of 1978 before the Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court, Trivandrum, C.C.No. 401 of 1978 before the Sub-Divisional Magistrate's Court, Attingal, C.C.No. 334 of 1978 of the Judicial Magistrate of the First Class, Trivandrum, C.C. No. 376 of 1978, C.C. No. 287 of 1978, C.C.No. 303 of 1978, C.C. No. 293 of 1978 and C.C.No. 375 of 1978 of the same Court he was found guilty along with his two friends and while they were sentenced to imprisonment in the case of the petitioner he was ordered to be detained in the Borstal School for various terms. These terms were to empire on 25th February, 1982, because by that time he would attain the age of 23 years and therefore could no more be detained in the Borstal School. The Borstal School run by the State and situate at Cannanore is intended as a correctional institution wherein adolescent offenders are detained to run their term. These terms were to empire on 25th February, 1982, because by that time he would attain the age of 23 years and therefore could no more be detained in the Borstal School. The Borstal School run by the State and situate at Cannanore is intended as a correctional institution wherein adolescent offenders are detained to run their term. Though in the 8 cases the sentence was one of detention in the Borstal School, in C.C.No. 203 of 1978 the learned Magistrate passed a sentence of imprisonment without adverting to the need for considering whether the peti-tioner should not be detained under the Kerala Borstal Schools Act.Sec-tion 5 of that Act provides that where it appears to a Court that an adolescent offender should, by reason of his cri-minal habits or tendencies, or association with persons of bad character, be subject to detention for such term and under such instruction and discipline as appears most conducive to his reformation and the prevention of crime, it shall be lawful for the Court, in lieu of passing a sentence of imprisonment, to pass an order of detention in a Borstal School for a term which shall not be less than two years and shall not exceed seven years, but in no case extending beyond the date on which the adolescent offender will, in the opinion of the Court, attain the age of twenty-three years. Of course, it is open to a Court after due consideration of the matters mentioned in the section to hold that for particular reasons it may not be appropriate to detain the adolescent offender in the Borstal School. That was not the case in the judgment in C.C.No.203 of 1978, for, no thought was given to this matter. In fact if in 8 cases the offender could be detained in the Borstal School there is no reason why in one other case he should not be so detained. That would really defeat the very purpose of directing detention under theBorstal Schools Act. Had he been directed to be detained in the Borstal School in that case too he would have, in the normal course, run his term concurrently and would have had his release on the 25th February, 1982. 3. Before the petitioner was directed to be detained in the Borstal School the Court had obtained the District Probation Officer's report. Had he been directed to be detained in the Borstal School in that case too he would have, in the normal course, run his term concurrently and would have had his release on the 25th February, 1982. 3. Before the petitioner was directed to be detained in the Borstal School the Court had obtained the District Probation Officer's report. That showed that the petitioner belongs to a very poor family at Vazhuthacaud, Trivandrum and he got into bad association early in life. He had studied up to the 9th Standard. Because of his way and attitude to life his mother and other relatives have practically given him up. 4. Detention in Borstal School is intended to mend the character of the adolescent offender and make him a responsible citizen fit for normal life. The minimum requirements of proper attention at the Borstal School would be (1) the provision of good food in the school; (2) provision of educational facilities and moral instruction; and (3) provision for learning some trade or avocation which will equip the adolescent offender to an after school life. A planned rehabilitative process which will enable the absorption of the adolescent offender on release in the main stream of society would alone make the reformatory process productive and beneficial since, otherwise on release the adolescent offender will again be drawn into the vortex of crime, with no other alternative left to him. 5. One of us, the Acting Chief Justice, had occasion to visit the Borstal School on 8th January, 1982 and it will be appropriate to record here in the light of that visit that the Government will do well to bestow attention on the facilities provided in the school keeping in mind the minimum obligations in that matter. 6. The very purpose of sending the petitioner to the Borstal School and not sentencing him to imprisonment was that by a correctional process he would be reformed. We are glad to note the Submission of the learned Advocate-General that Viswanathan Nair has been placed in the Star Class by the authorities of the Borstal School. That is said to indicate commendable conduct on his part during his period of detention in the school. We have talked to the petitioner who seems to fully realise that he should not lead a life of crime any more. He has owned up his mistakes of the past frankly. That is said to indicate commendable conduct on his part during his period of detention in the school. We have talked to the petitioner who seems to fully realise that he should not lead a life of crime any more. He has owned up his mistakes of the past frankly. He has been trained, he mentions, in the trade of Compositor in the Press. We hope this will facilitate in rehabilitating him in life outside the Borstal School. 7. The question before us is should we now permit the handing over of the prisoner after 25th February, 1982 to the authorities of Central Prisons so that he may undergo his sentence of imprisonment in one or other of the Jails in the State coming into contact with hardened criminals. We believe that it would only set at naught the good that might have been done by any reformatory process envisaged by the detention in the Borstal School. 8. We find sufficient reason to interfere suo motu with the decision of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Trivandrum in C.C. No. 203 of 1978. Just as in other cases in the normal course only an order of detention in the Borstal School should have been passed had the Magistrate applied her mind to the facts of the case and particularly the fact that the accused before her was only of the age of 20. Though reference has been made to that fact, it does not appear that further thought has been bestowed on that question. There are two courses open to us, one to convert the sentence into one of detention in the Borstal School so that it may run along with the terms of detention ordered in the other cases. In that event the petitioner would be free to be released by the 25th. There is another course and that is to invoke the provisions of theProbation of Offenders Act and to release the petitioner on probation for good conduct. After considerable deliberation we adopt the second course, in the interests of the petitioner himself, for, we would like to keep a watch on his career and perhaps the benefit of a Probation Officer's report and action by a Court thereon may also serve to benefit the petitioner after he is released. After considerable deliberation we adopt the second course, in the interests of the petitioner himself, for, we would like to keep a watch on his career and perhaps the benefit of a Probation Officer's report and action by a Court thereon may also serve to benefit the petitioner after he is released. Hence in exercise of our revisional power we modify the decision in C.C. No. 203 of 1978 of the Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court, Trivandrum and while upholding the conviction we modify the sentence to the extent of applying the provisions of the Probation of Offender's Act and directing that the petitioner will be released on probation of good conduct on his executing a personal bond in the sum of Rs.500 without sureties to appear and receive sentence when called upon during a period of one year and to keep the peace and be of good behaviour in the meantime. Though the petitioner is entitled to release in the usual course on 25th February, 1982, from the Borstal he is liable to undergo imprisonment until the bond is executed. To obviate that, he may, now that he has been brought to this Court, execute a bond in this Court, if he is willing in the course of the day so that on release from the Borstal School on 25th February, 1982 he is a free man, subject, of course, to the observance of the conditions of the bond of keeping the peace and be of good behaviour. There is no rehabilitative machinery in the State. The result is that the petitioner goes into the wide World which may not offer him a warm welcome. We have considered this question with considerable anxiety. It is the duty of the philanthropicand service organisations in the State to take care of such people and assist in rehabilitating them. We do believe that there will be response in this behalf from responsible associations. We direct the petitioner to appear before us on 26th February, 1982 by which, time we expect to receive response from the public about the assistance for rehabilitation of the petitioner. Well may then pass appropriate orders in that behalf so that it may be possible for the petitioner to live honestly and honourably without being compelled to resort to a life of crime. M.C.M.----- Petitioner released on probation.