Whether you live in the city or in the villages of Goa, public transport, especially the bus, is something you come to rely on. Here, a problem faced by everyone, gender notwithstanding, is the overcrowding of buses; the vehicles are packed with passengers way beyond their capacity, making this uncomfortable for everyone. Apart from the discomfort, this setup makes things conducive for abusive actions such as groping. Despite the issue of women’s safety being touted about, women feel threatened in something as commonplace as a bus-ride.
Recently, Vanessa Almeida e Gonsalves
from Margao took to social media to share a story of her friend who had a
horrific incident in the bus. The woman was travelling from Davorlim to Margao
at 3pm. A man started pinching her shoulder. When she yelled at him, he got
bolder. She felt uncomfortable as she was the only woman in a bus
holding around ten passengers. Just
as she got off her seat, he pinched her bottom. She started to scream at the man but
the gang of men sitting with him started to get up and come towards her. Since
she was travelling alone, she obviously got frightened and got off the bus. The
bus conductor neither said nor did anything in her defence. Eventually, she
and her husband traced down the bus owner and narrated the incident to him; he immediately fired the bus driver and
conductor for their behaviour.
“Women getting harassed in public
transport is very common. We have gone through these incidents right from our
college days and it is publicly embarrassing. When this happens in buses, there
are so many people yet no one to complain to and no action is taken by the
authorities. Even at basic public places, women feel vulnerable. When you come
across such men, you feel violated and threatened; most women are too scared to make a
noise and hence bear this humiliation quietly,” says Vanessa.
Christina Dedhia, a student of Dhempe College of Arts and Science,
Miramar has to travel from her college to her residence in Porvorim by bus. She usually
leaves by 5pm from college, a time when she is with friends and feels safe. But
if she gets a bit delayed, she feels uncomfortable even entering a bus. “If you climb in a bus at the
Miramar circle at around 6:30pm, men start staring at you like it’s a crime for
a girl to travel by bus at that time. It is so uncomfortable that I started
feeling unsafe, especially when I am alone. Even
while I get down, I have noticed men winking and passing comments. Sadly, even
when travelling with friends, men do the same thing and they get to take more
advantage if it is a crowded bus,” says Christina.
Almost
every woman has a personal incident to relate and it is unbelievable how women
are forced to come up with ways of protecting themselves in a service that is
for the public. Yes, women today have learnt or are learning how to “handle” a
bus ride, by standing a certain way, staring down oglers, being on guard,
staying in groups, raising our voices when needed and being alert. But isn’t it
shameful for society that women have to do so?