Team Herald
PANJIM: An incident early Sunday evening underlined the rotten sate of basic safety for women, even in the heart of Goa’s capital.
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A young media professional was flashed and violated by lewd gestures and expressions as she was returning home from work in the heart of the town near the new Patto bridge.
Narrating the horrific incident, she said, “In order to get the last Mapusa bus, I took the Patto footbridge way, mainly for three reasons – closer route to bus stand, has street lights and less drunkards. The route from the patto bridge till the bus stand has lots of drunkards lying on the footpath, which I feel unsafe to commute. After crossing the footbridge, I came across a man mas***bating and later began following me. I quickly called my friend, told her everything and asked her to be with me on call. It is the most horrible feeling ever to witness such incident”
After this, women in the State have raised questions about their safety in the State, particularly in the capital city of Panjim, which is visited on a daily basis for work.
Speaking to O Heraldo, Auda Viegas, Bailancho Ekvott president said, “The culprit must be punished because women have equal rights to be safe in the city. We have to ask the government if we are living in primitive times. I appeal to all 40 MLAs to initiate action to curb such incidents or they should tell us that women should not go out and work.”
Sabina Martins, convenor of Bailancho Saad, said, “Panjim has become unsafe. There have been many dark spots in the city where men stand and make obscene gestures. Women have complained saying that they feel very unsafe as they have been stalked and things are going from bad to worse.”
“The government should install CCTV cameras at footpaths leading to the bus stand, which people use very often. Besides, there has to be police patrolling. A clear message should be sent to those indulging in obscene gestures that sexual harassment will not be tolerated in the city” she demanded.
Martins said, “There are people lurking around in parks and locals complain that they feel unsafe. We need to ensure the safety of locals.”
Social activist Tara Kerkar said, “You are talking about Panjim? In fact women are not safe in the entire State. So many incidents are taking place, but who cares. Are tourists safe in the State? There are institutions like Women’s Commission, Women and Child Department (WCD) and Child Welfare Committee (CWC). They are only holding programmes. If you approach WCD, you are advised to approach the court.”
“In Panjim, I have at least three or four complaints in which complainants faced harassment. They do not want to lodge a complaint as no action may follow. Harassment does not stop in the city, there is also an issue when they walk back home after alighting from the buses. We have also heard that the emergency number 112 is rendered non-functional,” she said.
However, a senior police official told O Heraldo that sufficient safety measures have been put in place in the city and people need not worry.
“Five vehicles – three PCRs and two from Pink Police Force- conduct patrolling in the city. There are a sufficient number of high resolution cameras installed in the city to keep a watch on anti-social elements. However, if anybody faces any problem, they can call an emergency number or lodge a complaint at the police station,” the officer said.
