Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Stalking and eve-teasing are at the top of the list of complaints made by women at the Women Helpline (181) run by the women and child development department.
According to available figures, the WCD received 14,648 complaints in 2022-23 and of them, 564 and 384 were of stalking and eve-teasing respectively. During the same period, 216 cases of stalking and 139 cases of eve-teasing were reported in Indore.
Vanchana Singh, protection officer at one-stop-centre said, “The cases that we have received are mostly from slums and less affluent areas of the city. Most of the eve teasing takes place on local buses or city buses. No case is overlooked and action is taken in all of them.”
“When we receive complaints through the Women Helpline or CM Helpline we act promptly and a joint team from the Mahila Thana and WCD investigates the complaints and takes action,” said Ramniwas Budheliya, joint director, of WCD.
Budheliya said that the toll-free Women Helpline number also takes complaints of violence against women and helps the victims in overcoming their problems. The helpline number is open 24X7 and it is integrated with the one-stop centres of the state.
Helpline fighting against violence
The Women Helpline also helps in protecting women affected by violence or abuse. According to official records, there were around 106 cases of violence against women and 89 cases of domestic abuse during 2022-23. The Helpline also assists victims through counselling, by coordinating with police and providing legal services. During the Corona epidemic, the Women's Helpline 181 also worked as a Corona Help Centre.
WhatsApp and SMS services
To provide quick help to women, WhatsApp and MSS have also been linked to the Helpline. Protection office Vanchana Singh said, “Sometimes it becomes difficult to directly contact the Helpline and hence we have started the SMS service where one can message and then a member of our team reaches out to the victim.”
Complaints at Women Helpline (Indore)
Total (2022-23): 4014
Stalking: 216
Eve teasing- 139
Violence: 106
Domestic abuse: 89
