Haryana launches all women police stations

Promising a better policing environment to make women feel secure in approaching police, Haryana Government on Friday launched all-women police stations in all 21 districts of the State.Haryana Chief Minister Manohar lal inaugurated the first all-women police station at Mansa Devi complex in Haryana’s Panchkula town, adjoining Chandigarh.

Addressing a State level function on the launch of women’s police stations in the state, the Chief Minister also announced the decision to extend the benefit of free travel facility for women and her children in the buses of Haryana Roadways on the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan.Now, they would be able to avail themselves of this facility from 12 noon onwards today. Earlier, they were entitled to this facility only on Raksha Bandhan day, said he.

 He also announced that a cyber police station would soon be opened in Gurgaon to keep a check on cyber crime. later, such police stations would also be opened in other big cities of the State.

The Chief Minister said that all-woman police stations, inaugurated in all districts of the state, shall instill a sense of security among the women. Similar, police stations would also be opened in small towns and cities of the state on the success of this concept. 

 The women police station would undertake investigations into cases of various crimes against women such as stalking, dowry death, foeticide, molestation, sexual harassment, disrobing, voyeurism, eve-teasing, abduction, elopement, kidnapping, rape, dowry harassment, illegal second marriage and abetment to suicide.

 Expressing concern over the incidents of crime against women, the Chief Minister said that women generally hesitated to report cases of crimes to the police. Since women could easily narrate an incident to a woman and these women’s police stations would go a long way in empowering them to report what they encountered.

 Each police station would have a Mediation Centre to take up matrimonial disputes and the office of Protection-cum-Prohibition Officer would take up cases of dowry-cum-domestic violence.

 While ridiculing the statement made by some leaders of opposition parties regarding the shortage of staff in police stations, Manohar lal said that adequate staff had been made available at these police stations. The State Government has also decided to recruit more women police personnel in the Police Department. While the process for the recruitment of 1,000 female constables would soon be started, a proposal to recruit 200 sub inspectors (female) is under active consideration, he added.

Referring to the message given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Raksha Bandhan, the Chief Minister said that he had urged the brothers to give gift to their sisters by filling form of Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojna (PMSBY) under which they would get insurance cover of Rs2 lakh.

 Speaking on the occasion, Director General of Police, YP Singhal hailed the path-breaking initiative and said that women’s police stations would help generate an environment in which women victims would feel encouraged to lodge their complaints.