Kiran Bedi sends a strong message with her ‘Midnight incognito suraksha round’

A Special Report by Bipin Sharma

Akin to the olden days when Kings used to roam around their kingdoms in disguise to unravel the unspoken problems and issues concerning the subjects, Kiran Bedi being at the helm of affairs as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry did something similar recently. Living truly upto her reputation of being a tough taskmaster, the firebrand former supercop and Ramon Magsaysay Awardee, Bedi took everyone by surprise when reports surfaced of her going around the town ‘incognito’ during midnight for gauging the safety and security of women. The innovative move being termed as a “Midnight incognito Suraksha round” has suddenly brought the focus on her. Albeit some have been critical of Bedi riding the pillion sans a helmet during her midnight mission, the fact that an incumbent LG undertook such a bold and novel initiative for assessing and ensuring the well being of the women in the city deserves more plaudits than critical appraisal.

Bedi taking a lead in initiating a series of reforms for women safety in Puducherry is commendable considering that incidences of crime against women have continued unabated even after the horrific ‘Nirbhaya’ case and the subsequent ‘hue and cry’. As someone who has incessantly been emphasizing upon launching preventive measures like bolstering night patrolling etc, Bedi’s move of going around the town in a ‘disguised’ appearance for taking a firsthand stock of the existent safety measures at night for women has already won her lot of adulation.

Incidentally ever since Kiran Bedi took charge, the Union Territory of Puducherry has been witness to a series of reforms and developmental works. From initiating cleanliness and plantation drives, launching innovative water harvesting measures and prison reforms to instilling in a much needed sense of discipline among bureaucrats towards compliance to basic norms to undertaking robust safety measures for women, it has simply been an unrelenting, passionate quest by Bedi to better the state of affairs and the general quality of life for the citizens of Puducherry.

Elucidating more on her recent initiative, Kiran Bedi says, “From my midnight incognito ‘suraksha’ round to the 6am weekend ‘Swachh’ round, I found Puducherry reasonable safe. However there is all the scope for further improvement and enhancing of security measures especially for women. I would request citizens to connect with PCR/ 100 for freely conveying their concerns to the police. The night check was done ‘incognito’ as a pillion rider on a two wheeler to check how safe it was for the women at night to be on the road, or in any public place. The round indicated the need to bolster the security with more police presence with mobility as a strong measure of crime prevention and response. It will go a long way in enhancing women’s security in particular and for all in general, if seniors take turns and travel like this ‘incognito’ in public transport, especially during the wee hours. As far as the assessment of the night round in disguise goes, the town seemed safe, but there was not a single cop spotted anywhere (unless they too were in disguise). There were several triple riders over speeding, alongside noisy mobikes without silencers. It is the need of the hour to have a motorcycle patrol along with a few cycle cops atleast from 11pm to 4am. The cops should take a few rounds inside the bus stands, position themselves outside the railway station till the last train, and follow it by taking rounds of the town. The cops need to be deployed outside the cinema halls till the last show for keeping a tight vigil on mischief mongers and criminals. The DGP and the SSP must implement this forthwith. Also it is imperative to have a night officer declared by a written order who responds to an important night call, with the PCR in the loop about it. Henceforth, I shall be personally keeping a routine check on this. As regards, not wearing a ‘helmet’ goes, I have no qualms in saying that it was a ‘careful choice’ since we wanted to appear vulnerable for precisely evaluating as to how we women driving a scooty at night are looked at.”

Sharing more on the issue of women safety in Puducherry and elsewhere, Bedi adds, “The combined night patrolling holds the key to good policing wherein you have the entire team comprising local police, citizen warden, PCR van and the civil defence staff. The concept of special police officers (SPOs) could do wonders, but ‘ironically’ is nowhere in sight. It is also time to include NCC cadets as part of the internal city policing. Youngsters should be roped in for making the safe and sound. Marks should be given to students who participate more in community projects like assisting the local police in undertaking the safety drives. Countries like USA have students patrolling the city along with the local police. As for the advisory, girls need to plan their day carefully, and keep their loved ones informed about their whereabouts. They need to avoid isolated and unlit areas. In fact, unlit areas and places with dysfunctional streetlight should be reported to the authorities so that they could be timely fixed. It is distressing when streetlights remain in a dysfunctional state for days and months together. The local dwellers should timely inform the area authorities for having the faulty streetlight fixed. Criminals take advantage of all such callousness, and this explains the rising spates of crime against the women. It’s time to make installation of CCTVs and GPS system in buses and other public transportations mandatory. The reason why a number of rape cases go unreported is not because of any social stigma, but because there is no assured response by the police. We have a substantial number of PCR vans in the city, and there is no reason why they can’t take care of the women provided they adopt a more organized approach. PCR vans should have a lady home guard so that girls feel comfortable reporting their grievance to the police. Community policing can really do wonders. In order to prevent any Nirbahaya like incident in the future, the entire society has to pledge their commitment. People should resolve against ever being ‘mute spectators’ to any incident of crime against women. Women safety deserves top most priority, and there is an urgent need to brainstorm on the practical steps which will ensure its reality. Being complacent, or having a lax approach in matters concerning women safety would be completely ludicrous and imprudent as the security measures need constant reviewing and upgradation. The youth brigade has to be motivated for playing a proactive role in making the city and the country safe for girls and women. Incidents of crime against women dent the image of the nation on the whole. Be it the growing number of rape cases, the ill treatment meted out to foreign tourists, or the racist attacks against the North East girls, or the countless of sexual harassment incidents at work, all these need to be seriously addressed. The image of a safe city and country has a direct impact on national level campaigns like ‘Incredible India’ and ‘Atithi Devo Bhava’. The Uber cab rape case brought back the memories of the horrific Munirka gang rape incident of Nirbhaya that shamed the entire country. In the light of all this, it has become essential to formulate a comprehensive roadmap for strengthening the security of women by identifying all the sensitive places in the city, and accordingly intensifying the patrolling there. Surprise police checks need to be conducted in both private and government run buses ensued by the Alcometer test of bus drivers, conductors and their assisting staff. GPS on buses and autos needs to be made mandatory, and a time limit for pubs, bars and discotheques needs to be decided. Stern action needs to be initiated against hoodlums creating ruckus in an inebriated state. The ageless practice of deploying police staff in plain clothes for catching hoodlums unaware, needs to be revived.”