SATURDAY, MAY 04, 2024
Team Herald
PERNEM: Worried over the safety of women due to the presence of a large number of migrant labourers working in and around the Greenfield Mopa Airport site, Tamboxem-Mopa-Ugvem Village Panchayat made an appeal to the Goa Police Department for the deployment of ‘Pink Force’ personnel for patrolling the area.
In a letter to the Police Department, the request was made after the panchayat received an application from villagers expressing concern over the safety of women. It stated that with the ongoing work of the international airport project at Mopa, approximately 10,000 migrant labourers are working at the construction site.
“These labourers move around in the vicinity of the villages at any time of the day and night, sometimes to buy groceries and for other purposes. Further, since there is no proper transport connectivity in internal parts of the villages, people walk from the bus stand to their homes, especially the working ladies, who return late in the evening,” the application stated.
However, for the past two to three years, working women have raised their safety concerns and are afraid of moving around freely as they don’t feel safe.
Further, the application stated that with no accountability and proper check on the movement of these migrants, there is the possibility of them getting involved in untoward incidents since many of them sit by the roadside and consume alcohol.
Villager Baya Varak said, “If Pink Force is deployed and conducts routine patrolling, then the villagers will feel safe, especially the ladies. With the rising number of crimes involving migrants, safety is a major concern. So, we demand the Goa Police Department look into this matter and provide us with Pink Force,” Varak said.
