Looking at the increasing rate of crime against women in the district, the Faridabad police have come up with a commendable initiative to ensure working women reach their homes safely at night. They have launched a ‘night pick and drop facility’ for women. Working women who leave their offices late at night and are unable to get transportation will benefit greatly from this facility.
In an exclusive conversation with Indian Masterminds, the Public Relations Officer of Faridabad Police, Mr. Sube Singh, shared details about the initiative.
PICK AND DROP FACILITY FOR WOMEN AT NIGHT
The brainchild of Commissioner of Police, Faridabad, IPS officer Vikas Arora, the night pick and drop facility is an important step towards women’s safety, through which, the Faridabad Police will ensure the safety of women at night. For this, the Commissioner of Police has issued three numbers:
Police Control Room: 9999150000;
Police Control Room Landline:0129-2227200
Police Control Room Senior Citizen Cell: 7290010000
“The safety of women is the priority of the Faridabad Police. Crime can be stopped by arresting the criminals involved, as well as going in the right direction to prevent crimes from occurring. Taking a pre-emptive step, the Commissioner of Police has issued three numbers for the safety of women who feel unsafe and are stuck on the way at night for any reason,” Mr. Sube said.
CURBING CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN
When young women travel alone at night from their places of employment or other cities to Faridabad, they often feel unsafe. By calling the above-mentioned numbers, these women can obtain assistance from the police. Once they have the information, the PCR or ERV team, which is assigned to patrol the cities at night, will reach the woman and safely drop her off at her residence.
“Any woman who is not able to get a vehicle to get back home between 10 pm and 6 am can call the police helpline numbers – 9999150000, 0129-2227200 and 7290010000 – to request the service. It will be available throughout the week. A police control room van or a Station House Officer’s vehicle will reach the spot and will drop the woman safely to her destination,” said Mr. Sube.
The helpline numbers will remain active 24 hours. Through this initiative, crimes against women at night can be curbed or forestalled.
Also, if any woman finds it unsafe to travel alone in a cab or an autorickshaw, they, too, can now seek assistance from the police and avail of the pick-and-drop service.
INVOLVING DURGA SHAKTI TEAMS
Commissioner of Police, Faridabad, Mr. Vikas Arora has involved the Durga Shakti teams in the initiative as well and given directions to them to take quick action towards the safety of women by giving special guidelines regarding women’s safety.
“In this regard, the Commissioner of Police called the teams of Durga Shakti to his office and sensitized them that women’s safety is the priority of the Faridabad Police, and for this, immediate action should be taken wherever and whenever necessary. If a woman contacts the police for any kind of help, whichever police team will be present nearby will immediately reach the woman and ensure all possible help to her,” Mr. Sube said.
Also, in case a woman is unable to go home in the middle of the night for any reason whatsoever, the police team will drop her at a safe house. The Commissioner of Police has mandated that all kinds of safety equipment like first aid boxes, helmets, body protectors, shields, lathi-poles etc. should be present in the police vehicle to face any circumstance, whatsoever, to ensure no laxity in providing safety to women.
SPREADING THE WORD
In accordance with the Commissioner’s directions, police teams are meeting with private companies and forums to spread the word about the project, while simultaneously launching an awareness drive in the Faridabad region. In order to increase the number of women who are aware of the facility, brochures are also being handed out at bus stops, train stations, and Metro stations.
32 SHO vehicles, 52 ERVs, and six Durga Shakti Rapid Action Force vehicles have been made available for assisting women. Along with other senior officers, the city also has three female officers assigned as station house officers.
“Teams are patrolling the city’s industrial and outlying districts, where it is challenging for women to use public transportation. In order to prevent women from having to wait on the roadways or walk alone for extended periods of time, we have also ordered autorickshaw drivers to pick up female passengers from commercial sites, after 7 pm,” Mr. Singh said.
At the same time, in order to prevent crimes against women, police have increased their nighttime patrolling and checking. “We are putting a lot of effort into improving the safety of women. Our top priorities are thorough inspections of public transportation and the verification of cab and auto drivers,” Mr. Singh added.
According to the police, the SHOs of women police stations have been instructed to visit areas with maximum-paying guest accommodations, corporate offices, factories, colleges, and schools, where a significant number of women and girls work, live, or attend school and colleges. They have been strictly instructed to regularly convene meetings and educate the people in these places on security measures.
