The National Office for Crime recordings (NCRB) reported that 45,45,256 crimes against women were present in India in 2022. According to the NCRB data, 51 crimes against women in the country appear every hour. These are only numbers, and it is assumed that much more such cases have not been reported for various reasons, including a social stigma, the lack of awareness, the guilt of the victims and late justice. Despite active laws to protect women, India was in the 128th place of 177 countries in the Women, peace and security index 2023 Show a decrease in women’s security. In recent years there have been many initiatives of central and state governments to combat crimes against women. The Odisha government has announced a new plan for the safety of women to be installed “Rosa zones” in urban areas in the first phase. These pink zones cover a radius of 10 kilometers and have advanced CCTV monitoring, special auxiliary meters and constant surveillance to immediately support the needy women.
Safety measures by the states are directed in India
For example, several Indian states have taken such measures in the past Mission ShaktiPresent Initiated by the government of Uttar Pradesh, was launched in 2022. It integrates the helpline 1090 of women, emergency reaction, legal assistance, advice and accommodation and also tries to turn in rural areas. You teamsPresent Initiated by the government of Telangana in 2020 and focuses on security in public spaces through surveillance and quick reaction. It focuses on containing public harassment and stalking.
Source: Fii
Other countries such as Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have also taken over the SH Team. Shakti act and women help deskPresent Initiated by the government of Maharashtra, they suggested quick dishes and harder punishments for crimes against women. Pink Police PatrolPresent The government of Kerala initiates and focuses on ensuring security in public transport and schools. Mohalla marvel and CCTV monitoringPresent The monitoring of over 1.5 LAKH video surveillance cameras initiated by the Delhi government in 2020. Kaaval Uthavi app and female police stations initiated by the government of Tamil Nadu. It is a police emergency app with women-specific SOS options.
Sakhi one-stop centers initiated by the government of Assam offer legal assistance, police support, psychological advice and medical help. The Suraksha app and gender-sensitive training initiated by the government of Karnataka has characteristics that work with civil society groups to carry out street games and workshops for GBV. HABAYM Safe travel schemePresent initiated by the government of Andhra Pradesh. Sakhi Outreach program, initiated by the government of Odisha. Gender Cell and Sashakt Mahila App, initiated by the government of Rajasthan. Mahila SamvadPresent initiated by the BIHAR government. Tejaswini initiativePresent initiated by the Jharkhand government.
In the past five years, many Indian governments have launched women’s security programs with a comparable structure and purpose, although their design and size vary in the whole country.
In the past five years, many Indian governments have launched women’s security programs with a comparable structure and purpose, although their design and size vary in the whole country. First of all, these programs show how much dependent we are on technology tools such as mobile apps and panic buttons on public transport in order to receive help in an emergency. Second, most countries have set up special police units or help desks to ensure that the law enforcement system pays more attention to gender -specific concerns.
Third, a preventive surveillance infrastructure such as CCTV installations and real-time monitoring systems was integrated into initiatives such as the CCTV network manager of Delhi and the Safe City project from Madhya Pradesh. Fourth, public awareness and commitment of the community are critical, and outreach initiatives, sensitization at school level and cooperation with NGOs are effective approaches to encourage individuals to report and prevent gender-specific violence. Some programs strive to offer integrated service provision for legal, legal assistance, advice and police support in one place.
Odishas ‘pink zones’ and security systems in other Indian countries
The Odisha government will carry out one of these initiatives, namely “pink zones” in urban cities as part of the first phase. Odisha’s approach in pink zone takes existing global best practices such as CCTV, SOS apps and fast dishes and combines them into a single, zone-based model with a strong strategic timeline and structural investments in police work and cyber security, which could be effective and advantageous for women in need. In contrast to the plans of other states that add separate applications or desks, Odisha is a complete, ecosystem -controlled model that aims either depth (cyber security, special cadre) or width (urban reporting) from the street illumination to the delivery of the courtroom.
Source: Fii
In Delhi, Maharashtra and other Indian states, programs such as women help desks, fast dishes and cyber cells help to improve institutional police work and the judiciary. Odisha goes one step further by installing a concentrated women’s security cadre in all districts and gradually increasing the female police representative (50% by 2047). The police representative was an obstacle, as visible in Delhi’s pink cabins. An unusual lack of female officers has led to understaffed, neglected and disappeared police officers in the city.
Several states and ministries have launched SOS apps such as Kaaval Uthavi, Nirbhaya, Raksha, Suraksha and Kavalan, enable women to panic buttons and enable them to follow their position. Odisha’s new initiative, on the other hand, includes the cybersecurity-task force for women and cyber-sensis training in schools. This deals especially for both physical and online security. The initiatives taken by other countries are usually medium -term adjustments or changes in the functioning of things (apps, desks, patrols). Rosa zones are contained in Odisha’s Vision 2036 and 2047 Roadmaps, which link the security goals with female presentation goals, technological provision and regular management, which represents a strategic long-distance vision.
In India, the security efforts of state -initiated women show that the government makes efforts to strengthen the awareness of violence against women as public concern. However, these initiatives have proven themselves in practice in which women feel safe and strengthened.
Implementation is a challenge in many jurisdiction due to low conviction rates and tactics that may not achieve the best results. Odisha will face numerous challenges, including the merging of various agencies, the implementation in several cities and the pursuit of progress in relation to goals such as 50% of the police personnel are women.
On sustainable and integrative safe spaces for women
In India, the security efforts of state -initiated women show that the government makes efforts to strengthen the awareness of violence against women as public concern. However, these initiatives have proven themselves in practice in which women feel safe and strengthened. Some of the obstacles to positive results are the ongoing implementation challenges, structural limits and social and cultural progress and not the inappropriate implementation.
Source: Fii
Most initiatives such as smartphone apps, support lines, CCTV cameras and female patrol teams are proactive. It indicates that after the incident, they only help or monitor or monitor after the incident. They do not deal with the underlying causes of violence, which include the charges of the victims, patriarchal convictions and institutional indifference.
One of the main challenges in implementation is a lack of accountability and supervision. Many panic button applications and helplines are not connected to local police systems, so they do not react immediately or not at all. In some states, women with inadequate employees or training help them more symbolic than functional, surviving rooms. In addition, women still report less crimes due to poor conviction rates and longer attempts. This indicates a gap between the laws and the efficiency of the dishes. The majority of the programs mainly target urban areas; Therefore, rural and peribanic populations are not protected by the security net.
One of the main challenges in implementation is a lack of accountability and supervision. Many panic button applications and helplines are not connected to local police systems, so they do not react immediately or not at all.
The proposed Pink Zones program of the Odisha government could prove to be unusual because it includes infrastructure, surveillance, emergency reaction and squad development. Nevertheless, they can suffer from similar challenges. First, various government agencies such as the police, the traffic departments and the non -governmental organizations (NGOs) have to work together exactly in order to correctly offer the services if necessary. Second, constant surveillance and reaction to large cities requires significant investments in technology and highly qualified employees. Bureaucratic delays and displacement of political priorities often cause these tasks to be neglected.
In addition, even the best planned locations can not be sure, unless gender -specific prejudices within the social institutions, in particular by the police and administrative, are approached by training, sensitization and reform within these institutions. Unless security is interwoven to a larger framework for social transformation, equality for women and participatory democracy; Initiatives such as the pink zone can become isolated solutions in an inherently unequal world.
Hiba is a research scientist and freelance writer. She believes that all people are the same and look forward to working for the strengthening of women and equal opportunities.
