CALCUTTA, NOV 28: The West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC) may move a suggestion to ask for more power to monitor the implementation of its recommendations.

Talking about the importance of overseeing execution of its recommendations, the chairman of the WBHRC, Justice Chittatosh Mookerjee, said there was need to ``make the human rights commissions more meaningful and effective''.

Justice Mookerjee said there was need for suitable legislative changes to provide more teeth to the HRCs. He hinted that a discussion on this at a higher level might already be underway.

The chairman declined to comment on the human rights situation in the State. He, however, said that the cases of custodial deaths have gone up as against the figure of 1995-96.

According to the commission's report while the number of custodial deaths was 38 in 1995-96, in 1996-97 the total number is 63 with 41 deaths reported this year till November.

Releasing the Annual Report of the Commission for the year 1996-97 here today, Justice Mookerjee said, ``There is a marked improvement in the awareness regarding the existence of the Commission.''

Elaborating this, he said during the year 1995-96, the WBHRC received only 524 cases of human rights violations while in 1996-97 the total number of cases was 1,553.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.