Vijayawada: Stating that women were facing harassment in educational institutions, government offices, police stations and also due to public representatives and judges, the All India Democratic Women’s Association on Sunday stressed the need for government to ensure more security measures were in place to protect women.
Addressing the AIDWA meeting here, association state secretary K. Swaroopa Rani demanded government increase the number of women special police stations and ensure safety of women at workplaces. She alleged that the government had failed totally to contain attacks on women despite the presence of several special Acts and laws.
Safety of women has emerged as a challenge in the country, Rani said. Citing a few instances where the government servants, judiciary and public representatives have exploited women, Rani said women were projected in a poor light by the mass media.
As part of controlling crime against women, the government should take necessary steps so that women are respected whether they are in movies, advertisements or whatever their chosen field may be, she said.
Apart from atrocities against them, lack of education is also a challenge that must be overcome to ensure that women are on par with men, Rani said. “The government must ensure that girl students dropping out from school is minimised,” she said.
“The major reason for girls dropping out at high school level is the lack of proper washrooms in schools. The government should immediately build the necessary infrastructure for the sake of girl students,” she said.
AIDWA district vice-president, Y. Zoya said a campaign to enlighten women on how to face problems would be organised from January 20 to 30. The main demands to be raised in the campaign include release of funds from Rajeev Vidya Mission to build restrooms in schools for girl students across the state and also an increase in the number of police stations for women.
