Women Safety

Women Safety


IF YOU ARE A SINGLE WOMAN

Vijayawada city is a safe place for young women living alone. With a police set up responding within 7 minutes to any call made to Dial 100 and multi-modal access for police services, they have nothing to fear.
Crime against lone young women is same that faced by all other sections of the population.
Vijayawada city police have developed mobile Apps which have special features to instil a sense of security in women. The SOS App will alert the entire police system when pressed for help. Also, every travel undertaken at any time of day and night can be tracked. Pre-paid auto services from Bus Station, Railway station and airport will ensure that you reach home perfectly safe.
However, following are some of the precautions women living alone can take at not much cost or effort.

Some precautions for the single women

  • Always take an apartment/house recommended by known people and take their opinion about security and safety in that locality.
  • Bring in your family members/ relatives/friends and introduce them to your landlord/neighbours. Give them signals that you have strong ties/connections.
  • Be friendly with your neighbours and share about your work life with them. They can be supportive to you.
  • Be vigilant about men hanging near your apartment/house for many days together and if you find their behaviour or intent suspicious, use Dial 100 or other police Apps to contact local police. They will act in such a way that your apprehensions are addressed.
  • At the places where you buy groceries from, give clothes for ironing, buy vegetables, do not give too much information about whereabouts/ personal life. At times it can be misused.
  • Try to keep a helper/maid at home. It lessens the tension of being alone all the time.
  • Get new locks or have the tumblers reset when you move into a previously occupied dwelling.
  • Don’t hide a key outside the door, under mats, flowerpots or under rocks. If you want extra keys nearby, leave one with a trusted neighbour.
  • Make sure you have good, safe locks on all doors. Lock all doors when you go out, even if it’s for just a minute.
  • Be cautious when strangers enter your home. Use a peephole or look through a window to check. If you must talk to a stranger, never open the door wide.
  • Report broken streetlights in your neighbourhood. Well-lit areas discourage burglars and teasers.
  • Don’t give information to strangers over the telephone. On wrong number calls, don’t give the caller your details. Report continued wrong calls to the police for verification.
  • Don’t give your computer password or other pertinent information to others.
  • If possible, use metal grillwork on entrance doors.
  • Check references of maids, cleaning women or anyone else who may have to work inside your apartment while you are away from it. You can seek free service from police in this regard.

Better safe than sorry

  • Always take the elevator instead of the stairs. Stairwells are horrible places to be alone.
  • Do not get into an elevator if there is someone it in with whom you are not comfortable.
  • Do not stand in the corners of the elevator, be near the front by the doors, ready to get off.
  • Continuous eve-teasing by local should be notified to the police.
  • If stalked, walk to the local police station. Change direction of walking and never enter a lonely area.
  • Always keep your distance when walking past stranger on the street or in dark areas.
  • Get a cell phone. Keep it charged.
  • If you are walking alone in the dark or in a lonely area, and you find someone stalking you, scream and then run!
  • Offending phone calls and mails from anyone whom you don’t like should be clearly avoided. Be polite and firm. If he doesn’t stop, report it to the police.

At social gatherings (parties)

  • Youngsters of present generation should always be conscious about what they are doing. They should select only safe modes and safe places for partying.
  • When making plans to go out for the first time, consider meeting your friends at a public place. Also let someone know whom you are meeting and where you are going.
  • Young women in social events should never leave their beverages (drinks) unattended.
  • Try to move with the people whom you know very well.
  • Never let the strangers know your personal details at any cost.
  • Never ever fall in the trap of drugs and other intoxicating substances.
  • While trying to build up relationship online, do not under any circumstance, reveal any personally identifiable information in your profile, personal ads, or private e-mails.
  • Never get lured by the unknown ‘friendship clubs’. They might drag you into sleaze world.
    • Youngsters of present generation should always be conscious about what they are doing. They should select only safe modes and safe places for partying.
    • When making plans to go out for the first time, consider meeting your friends at a public place. Also let someone know whom you are meeting and where you are going.
    • Young women in social events should never leave their beverages (drinks) unattended.
    • Try to move with the people whom you know very well.
    • Never let the strangers know your personal details at any cost.
    • Never ever fall in the trap of drugs and other intoxicating substances.
    • While trying to build up relationship online, do not under any circumstance, reveal any personally identifiable information in your profile, personal ads, or private e-mails.
    • Never get lured by the unknown ‘friendship clubs’. They might drag you into sleaze world.

While exercising outdoors

  • The most important thing you can do is stay in well- traveled residential areas. Avoid isolated areas.
  • Never wear headphones while walking or jogging outside. It not only increases the likelihood that you will not hear someone approach from behind.
  • Always assume hostile intent from approaching strangers and keep your distance. Remember many attacks are preceded by one of these three questions. May I use your phone? What time is it? And ‘Do you know how to go to…?

Self protection techniques

The eyes are the most vulnerable part of the body. Poke the attacker there and you can possibly have a good window of opportunity to escape.

  • Aim for the groin area. A hard kick or a knee jammed into your attacker’s groin will temporarily leave him unable to attack you.
  • The neck is also a vulnerable spot, but have you know where to grip and you have the strength to cut off his breath.
  • The last place is the knees. Everyone’s knees are vulnerable and a swift kick here will get anyone down.
  • Take a self-defence course and carry pepper spray if you wish, but don’t let either give you a false sense of security. Better to avoid areas where an attack can take place.
  • Don’t depend on a dog to protect you all the time. If you are single and have a dog let it be trained professionally to defend you.
  • Finally, do not assume that none of this will ever happen to you. No one expects it. But we must be aware and prepared.
  • Show your opposition strongly if you notice a situation where a woman seems to be being harassed, you may be able to help her.

Eve teasing/ragging/stalking

Eve Teasing Streets, bus stands/stops, railway stations, parks and other public places should be for everyone to access and enjoy. Yet for many women they can be places of teasing or harassment.
How to deal with sexual harassment:
It is not possible to have one single strategy to address this. It is important to make a judgement on the spot depending on the context.
In all contexts, contacting police by dialling 100 is the easiest and best way to get a response. You can also use the SOS facility in 4th Lion App.  The App is available in “Google Play Store” & “I Store”.
You can also halt a passing police car or take the help of men appearing to be well meaning to thwart attempts at teasing/harassment.
Don’t cooperate with groups of men who harass. Act to frustrate or oppose harassment. Don’t cooperate with harassment. Refuse to join in.
At a suitable occasion, raise issues about sexual harassment.
Show your opposition strongly
If you notice a situation where a woman seems to be being harassed, you may be able to help her.
If someone is bothering her, you could go over and ask “Is someone bothering you?” If the woman answers in the affirmative, you may intervene on her behalf or call the police or collect other gentlemen to corner the aggressor or do all of these.

Stalking

Stalking is unwanted or obsessive attention by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviours are related to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The word stalking is used, with some differing meanings, in psychology and psychiatry and also in some legal jurisdictions as a term for a criminal offence.
Some youths suffer from such obsessive-compulsive behaviour syndromes. It can sometimes happen to middle aged persons also. In such cases, they need psychiatric help. If such behaviour is reported to the police well in time, the reasons and patterns can be identified and suitable action can be taken.

On the whole, Vijayawada is a very safe place for women – single or otherwise, students, foreigners, tourists and visitors. Several modes of contacting the police are available at fingertips. Police response is very swift – typically under 8 minutes.

Ragging

Ragging is a practice similar to hazing in educational institutions. The word is mainly used in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Ragging involves existing students baiting or bullying new students. It often takes a malignant form wherein the newcomers may be subjected to psychological or physical torture.
Due to some events in the past where young junior students were driven to suicide unable to cope with the bullying by seniors, ragging is prohibited by law and viewed seriously.
Junior students who are apprehensive of ragging or who are in the midst of being ragged can dial 100 or press the SoS App to get immediate police response. It is also necessary that they report these matters to the college authorities as early as possible so that institutional mechanisms are in place.


IF YOU ARE A SINGLE WOMAN

Eve Teasing Streets, bus stands/stops, railway stations, parks and other public places should be for everyone to access and enjoy. Yet for many women they can be places of teasing or harassment.
How to deal with sexual harassment:
It is not possible to have one single strategy to address this. It is important to make a judgement on the spot depending on the context.
In all contexts, contacting police by dialling 100 is the easiest and best way to get a response. You can also use the SoS Mobile App freely downloadable from the net under the search head ‘4th Lion’.
You can also hail a passing police car or take the help of men appearing to be well meaning to thwart attempts at teasing/harassment.
What men can do to stop harassment
Don’t do it yourself. Learn about the problem so that you become more sensitive to what might offend others.
Don’t cooperate with groups of men who harass. Act to frustrate or oppose harassment. Don’t cooperate with harassment. Refuse to join in.
At a suitable occasion, raise issues about sexual harassment.
Show your opposition strongly
If you notice a situation where a woman seems to be being harassed, you may be able to help her.
If someone is badgering her, you could go over and ask “Is someone bothering you?” If the woman answers in the affirmative, you may intervene on her behalf or call the police or collect other gentlemen to corner the aggressor or do all of these.


IF YOU ARE A SINGLE WOMAN

Employees Responsibilities
Talk about it and hold meetings.
Request your employer (or other institution head) to establish a complaint procedure and a Committee to deal with these complaints.
The Committee should be headed by a woman and 50% of the members should be women.
NGOs or other body familiar with the issue must be made party to the Committee to prevent undue pressure within the organisation.
Employers’ Responsibilities
To develop a sexual harassment policy which expressly outlaws sexual harassment and to notify, publish and circulate it visibly.
Develop a complaint procedure which is confidential and time-bound; ensure treatment of complaints; protection of victims and witnesses; report compliance with the guidelines to the appropriate authority.
Encourage awareness raising through trainings, seminars, posters, memos, etc.
Treat sexual harassment as a disciplinary offence and amend service rules to incorporate this.
Where such behavior falls under criminal law, take all steps to assist the affected person (s) in terms of support and preventive action.

Sexual harasment of students/children

Protect your children

Most child sexual abuse, up to 90%, occurs with someone a child has an established and trusting relationship with, whether known or not by the parent, and who is often a person in a position of authority. Teaching your children about stranger danger is misleading and does not address the reality that most children know and trust those who abuse them.

Sexual predators are smart, extremely cunning and often individuals you least expect would commit such crimes. Sometimes they are the well-respected pillars of the community. They develop elaborate schemes and go to great extents to do anything to get access to children.

KNOW THE 10 RULES FOR SAFETY FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS

Rule 1 – Know Who You Are & Where You Live
Your child needs to know vital information that will help them and others if they are ever lost or missing. That information includes their first and last name, their phone number including area code, their street address, town, state and country. They will also need to know how to call for help using 911 on a telephone. Use this page as your guide and create a larger page so your child can fill in the information.
Rule 2 – Know What To Do When Lost In A Store
When lost in a store, your child should scream the name of the person they came with and find the store clerk or the person with the money by the cash register. If they cannot find the person with the money, they should find a mother with children. If someone tries to take them outside, to the bathroom or to abduct them, they should scream, “Help me, this is not my father (mother, brother or sister). I don’t know them.” If your child is missing in a store you should immediately find a clerk, explain the situation and insist that they call security to immediately close all entries and exits in the store.

Rule 3 -Children Must Be Able To Identify Their Body Parts
Help your child identify their private parts using the correct terminology. Be sure to identify breasts, vagina, penis and buttocks. Your child must also know that these are private areas that their bathing suit covers. Explain that only Mommy or Daddy may touch in a certain way while being groomed or being examined by a doctor with Mom or Dad present.

Rule 4 -Check First
Young children do not have the capacity to make sound decisions about their personal safety. The check-first rule places the responsibility of making those important safety decisions on adults, where they belong. The check-first rule is based on the premise that adults or older children should not be giving children gifts, offering them rides or coercing them into their home or car, for any reason without checking with their mom, dad or a guardian first. Children must check first before accepting a gift or going anywhere with anyone, even if that person is someone known to them. Teens must also use this rule of safety before accepting transportation from someone, especially if it is someone they know.

Rule 5 – Children Must Trust Their Inner Voice, Especially That Yucky Feeling
We all have that feeling inside that tells us what feels right and what feels wrong or uncomfortable. Many children who have been sexually abused describe a feeling of discomfort as having a “yucky” feeling inside. You must teach your child to trust or honor their inner voice or that “yucky” feeling. When you feel uncomfortable, do you trust that feeling and take action? The parent who doesn’t like others rubbing her child’s head, must, herself, trust her inner voice before she can teach her child to. She has to say, “ Please do not do that” and “I don’t like that,” before she can expect to teach her child to do the same. Sometimes parents become so concerned about hurting other people’s feelings that they forget that their own children are being harmed if they fail to express and model healthy limit- setting with other adults. This models behavior that tells children that it’s okay for someone else to do something offensive that makes you feel “yucky” and you should do nothing about it because you might hurt the other person’s feelings. That teaches children to cast aside what they feel is inappropriate to preserve someone else’s feelings because what they feel isn’t as important.

When a child’s feelings are continually cast aside, the child learns that the yucky feeling or the alarm inside of them is unimportant, so they eventually begin to disregard it altogether. This muffling of their inner alarm makes them more vulnerable to sexual predators who are masters at selecting children who have been taught not to trust their feelings. You can teach your child to trust the yucky feeling by trusting your children when they are feeling uncomfortable. Depending upon their age, either you must intervene to prevent the offensive behavior and/or you must empower your child by helping them to articulate to the offending person that their behavior is unacceptable.

Rule 6 -Don’t Be Too Polite
Here’s what one sex offender had to say about being polite: “Know that we will use any way we can to get at children. I was disabled and spent months grooming the parents so they would take me out and help me. No one thought that disabled people could be abusers.” [i]

Teach children to be respectful of the limits and boundaries of the role a person plays in their lives and to defend those boundaries, but not to just be polite. To adults who were sexually abused as children by clergy, being polite and respectful to them meant being silent when they were being sexually abused.

Children hold adults in high esteem, and as another sex offender tells us, “Don’t teach your kids to do everything that adults tell them, otherwise they’ll be too frightened of adult status.”

Rule 7 – No Secrets
Some parents believe that they can teach good secrets and bad secrets. I believe that a child should not be expected to keep any secret at all. I have always told parents to explain to their children, quite simply, that secrets are against the rules. They can’t tell them and if someone asks them to keep a secret, they are not allowed to. When I am out in the community conducting prevention workshops, parents will test the secret rule by asking if it is okay to keep a surprise party a secret. For whatever reason you conjure up, especially surprise parties, there is no reason why a child should be expected to keep a secret.

If you tell your child that there are good secrets and bad secrets then you are giving them the responsibility of deciding whether or not they should keep a secret or tell, a responsibility they may not be ready to handle. The no-secret rule eliminates this problem and models healthy boundaries. You shouldn’t be telling your child something that needs to be kept secret in the first place.

Rule 8 -Say No and Tell When Touch Is Not OK
Have your child practice screaming “NO!” and telling when someone does or says something that doesn’t feel okay. Saying or screaming “No!” and telling is an important concept for your child to understand and feel completely comfortable doing. Role play by pretending to be a person trying to coerce your child into taking off their clothes or assisting them with the buckle on their pants. Be sure to give permission to your child to scream “No, I won’t do that!” or “No, you can’t do that!” and let them repeat back to you what you tried to do as part of the telling exercise. Explain that no one is allowed to touch them in their bathing suit or private areas and if someone tries they should scream “No!” and tell.

Sexual abuse is a violation of a boundary. A boundary is a limit or edge that defines you as separate from others. A parent asked me what they could do to prevent people from continually rubbing their child’s full head of curly hair because it was beginning to bother the child. I certainly don’t blame the child for being bothered, wouldn’t you be bothered if people continually entered your private space to rub your head and tell you how cute you are? Of course this is not a sexual assault, but saying “no” to the easy stuff is what will prepare your child to say “no” if someone tries to touch them in a private area.

Rule 9 -Do Not Give Personal Information Out On The Internet
Children and teens get a lot of benefit from using the Internet, but they can also be targets of crime. If your children are going to use the Internet whether it is to help them with homework or to talk to their friends, there are rules that they must follow:

1. Never give out personal information.
Personal information means any information that might help someone find out who your child is. Personal information includes their name, address, phone number, parents’/guardians’ names, name of the school they attend, name of the sport teams on which they play, name of the sport fields on which they play, their friends’ names or any other information that someone can use to figure out who they are.

2. Never meet anyone in person that you met online.

3. Never send anyone your photo or your school photo without checking first with a parent/guardian.

4. Always tell a parent/guardian if you receive any e-mails or messages that include inappropriate language and photographs or anything that makes them feel uncomfortable.

There have been many cases where sexual predators accumulated detailed information about a child over a long period of time. One month a predator might ask the color of your child’s uniform and six months later the name of the field on which they play soccer. Over time they develop a very detailed profile of your child and may make attempts to contact them in person. Make your child aware that even the simplest answer to a question might be information someone is using to eventually target them. Sexual predators have found a fertile preying ground on the Internet and your child can avoid danger simply by following these four rules.

Click here for more prevention information

Rule 10 – Take Action! It’s Your Right.
Teaching your child to take action is simple. You are giving them permission to take action when they feel uncomfortable or when they have the yucky feeling.


Pocso act/Nirbhaya Act

POCSO Act:
The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) 2012 was enacted in order to effectively address sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children.
The Act defines a child as any person below eighteen years of age. It defines different forms of sexual abuse, including penetrative and non-penetrative assault, as well as sexual harassment and pornography. It deems a sexual assault to be “aggravated” under certain circumstances, such as when the abused child is mentally ill or when the abuse is committed by a person in a position of trust or authority like a family member, police officer, teacher, or doctor. The Act also casts the police in the role of child protectors during the investigative process. Thus, the police personnel receiving a report of sexual abuse of a child are given the responsibility of making urgent arrangements for the care and protection of the child, such as obtaining emergency medical treatment for the child and placing the child in a shelter home, and bringing the matter in front of the CWC, should the need arise.
The Act further makes provisions for avoiding the re-victimisation of the child at the hands of the judicial system. It provides for special courts that conduct the trial in-camera and without revealing the identity of the child, in a manner that is as child-friendly as possible. Hence, the child may have a parent or other trusted person present at the time of testifying and can call for assistance from an interpreter, special educator, or other professional while giving evidence. Above all, the Act stipulates that a case of child sexual abuse must be disposed off within one year from the date the offence is reported.
The Act also provides for mandatory reporting of sexual offences. This casts a legal duty upon a person who has knowledge that a child has been sexually abused to report the offence; if he fails to do so, he may be punished with six months’ imprisonment and/ or a fine.

Nirbhaya Act:

Sexual offences are penalized under various laws including the Indian Penal Code (IPC) 1860, the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act, 1956, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, (PSCO Act), and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

On December 4, 2012, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2012, was introduced in the Parliament to amend criminal laws on the recommendations of the National Commission on Women, and Law Commission’s 176th report. The Bill redefined rape as a gender neutral offence, specifies punishment for acid attack and failure of public servant to perform his duties. Following the protests against the Delhi gang rape case the government constituted a committee to review the laws on crime against women. On February 3, 2013, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance came into force to give effect to some of the provisions of the Bill. Subsequently, the Bill was passed by the Parliament and received President’s nod on 2nd April, 2013.

Highlights of the Act

1. The Act amends the Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Evidences Act.
2. The amendments proposed seek to replace the offence of rape with sexual assault which has a wider definition.
3. The Act protects the victim by penalizing public servants who fail to record FIRs related to sexual offences. It also requires the victim to be provided with legal and medical assistance.
4. The Act specifies a separate offence for acid attack. Other new offences such as voyeurism, stalking, assault to disrobe a woman, and sexual harassment have also been defined.
5. The Act prescribes higher punishment for sexual assault resulting in death or persistent vegetative state, gang sexual assault and repeat offenders.
6. The Act increases the punishment for sexual assault upon a judicially separated wife.
7. The Act also increases the consent age from 16 to 18 years.

Stalking:

Only protects women from being stalked by men. By implication, women may stalk men with impunity. The prohibited action is defined thus: “To follow a woman and contact, or attempt to contact such woman to foster personal interaction repeatedly despite a clear indication of disinterest by such woman; or monitor the use by a woman of the internet, email or any other form of electronic communication. There are exceptions to this section which include such act being in course of preventing or detecting a crime authorised by State or in compliance of certain law or was reasonable and justified.”
The offence is no longer gender-neutral, only a man can commit the offence on a woman. The definition has been reworded and broken down into clauses, The exclusion clause and the following sentence has been removed “or watches or spies on a person in a manner that results in a fear of violence or serious alarm or distress in the mind of such person, or interferes with the mental peace of such person, commits the offence of stalking”. Punishment for the offence has been changed; A man committing the offence of stalking would be liable for imprisonment up to three years for the first offence, and shall also be liable to fine and for any subsequent conviction would be liable for imprisonment up to five years and with fine.


4th Lion App :

1.   SOS (Save Our Souls)

Purpose :

SOS Emergency App will protect citizens of Vijayawada especially women in any kind of risk. Immediate rescue will be provided by Vijayawada Police with the help of Geo Positioning

How to use :

1) Open 4th Lion

2) Press SOS button for two seconds in emergency

3) Vijayawada city police will be alerted immediately

4) 4th Lion traces the location based on geo positioning

5) Rescue team will reach the location

6) Person will be rescued

7) Prior filling of SOS profile will improve the rescue

2.   Track my travel
Purpose :

Citizens esp., women can travel safely any time of day or night from any where to any where in Vijayawada Police jurisdiction, assured that Police is keeping track of their travel and will come to immediate rescue in case of any incident. Also any Person of your choice will be kept informed of your travel.

How to use :

1) Open 4th Lion

2) Press “Track my Travel” button

3) Fill travel details and start

4) Vijayawada police will start tracking until you reach safe

5) Citizens can stop tracking after reaching safely

Dial 100 :

DIAL 100 is a 24×7 helpline of Vijayawada Police. This system provides facility to any citizen to call for services of Police in times of crisis. The main objective of DIAL 100 is to provide immediate response to any contingency. The Control Room monitors the call received from citizen through DIAL 100 and coordinates the movement of the nearest Mobile Team to respond to the call. The conversation at all levels is recorded and time stamped.  Dial 100 First Responder system operated by Vijayawada police has been achieving an average response time of under 7 minutes. This is the time taken for the first responder to reach the caller after the caller puts down the phone.  This compares very favourably with international standards.

She Autos :

Andhra Pradesh State Honourable Chief Minister Sri N. Chandrababu Naidu launched She-Autos in Vijayawada on 4th December, 2015. Total 49 auto-rickshaws were distributed to the women who got training in driving them. The scheme would not only help provide security to women passengers when they travel at unusual hours, but also would help women drivers to stand on their feet and increase their family income.  The women have undergone training in driving in an open area of eight acres at Nunakapeta before they were given the vehicles. Training was also given in a showroom at Sitaramapuram on performing minor repairs.  The auto rickshaws for women were introduced for the first time in the country.