TEAM HERALD
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PANJIM: North Goa district is set to get a Women Help Desk at every police station, each of which will have two lady personnel on every 12-hour shift, according to a decision taken during a police review meeting on Women’s safety on Friday.
North Goa Superintendent of Police Vijay Singh, who chaired the meeting of officers from the respective police stations at Porvorim, said these desks will be headed by lady police officers.
“Women in-charge of the help desks have to ensure comfort level to the complainant while discussing problems. The desk personnel will guide the victim on their cases and facilitate in lodging the complaint,” the officer told Herald after the meeting.
The presence of women police officers round the clock is for the safety of women and girls, especially during late hours.
In addition, a dedicated 1091 helpline number for women in distress has become operational and the calls will be attended by lady cops who will also ensure to call back when they receive missed calls. “Inspectors of the respective police stations will personally monitor all calls/cases and their status every morning,” Singh added.
In yet another impressive move, policemen in civil clothes will randomly travel in buses to check the security status of women while also conducting checks at peak hours.
Generally, arrogant and blatant overcrowding of buses by conductors due to the powerful bus lobby operating in Goa since Liberation have been major reasons behind molestation and eve-teasing cases, few of which get reported if the victim dares to complain. Road Transport Organisation (RTO) and police officers are rarely seen ‘challaning’ overcrowded buses due to their complicity.
Moreover, the IPS officer stated that police officers will pay random visits to schools and colleges located in their respective jurisdictions, primarily to crackdown on eve-teasers and other anti social elements.
The officer further said they are endeavoring to dispose of investigations into 90 pending cases against women. “Several cases were registered in 2012, however, most of the total cases will be chargesheeted shortly,” he mentioned.
Security measures across various states are being reviewed in the backdrop of a 23-year-old girl’s gang-rape in a moving bus on December16, 2012 in Delhi and her subsequent death.
