All-women PCR vans to hit city roads this Friday

NEW DELHI: To make Delhi streets safer for women and ensure quick response to those in distress, five all-women police patrol vans will be flagged off on Friday.

NEW DELHI: To make Delhi streets safer for women and ensure quick response to those in distress, five all-women police patrol vans will be flagged off on Friday.

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An average of a dozen women complain of being stalked every 24 hours in Delhi, shows data by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). In 2014, there were 4,700 complaints of stalking, 674 relating to voyeurism and 6,400 assaults to disrobe women, the data showed. There were 22,000 other complaints relating to sexual harassment at workplace, streets, public transport and elsewhere.

Police said the objective of having special patrol officers is to make women feel comfortable while approaching the police for help and discuss their problems. Police Control Room (PCR) van officials are considered the first responders to any crime, officials said.

“The move will encourage women to seek police assistance in resolving their issues,” said a senior police officer associated with the initiative.

Delhi Police statistics show that 2,199 cases of rape and 5,367 molestation cases were registered in 2015. This year till August 15, 1,397 rapes and 2,725 molestations were reported. As many as 627 cases of eve-teasing have also been registered this year. Apart from sex crimes, women are also most vulnerable to street criminals such as snatchers.

The all-women patrol vans will have three women personnel — a driver, in-charge and an armed woman commando. These vans will patrol streets frequented by women and areas falling under the territorial jurisdictions of the 44 police stations from where maximum number of women-related crimes are reported.

The police identified 44 police station areas last year during a crime mapping exercise from were maximum cases of crime against women were recorded.

Twenty women, including four assistant sub-inspectors (ASIs), six head constables (HCs) and 10 constables, are being training in ‘musketry and firing’. They are being trained to handle sophisticated MP5 assault rifles, Glock and 9mm pistols at the police control room’s (PCR) training centre in north Delhi’s Model Town.

“A majority of them have been trained as women commandos in the past. Their commando training would help them combat criminals on streets. They can fight fire with fire and use self-defence techniques as well,” said the officer.

In addition, nine women constables have been trained to drive PCR vans. Each one of them has undergone training for 120 hours — 60 classes of two-hour duration. Those who will act as in-charge of these vans are serving women personnel, who are well versed with the law and their nature of duties.

After the pilot project is over, more such vans will be deployed on roads across the city.