More Women, Kids Seek Singappen's Protecting Arm

To top it all, they have visited 1,04,918 hotspots providing the much-required confidence for women and children to move freely with a sense of security and safety.

In Chennai city alone, the SSF have received 244 complaints in the four zones and the highest number of complaints, 52, were received at Mylapore, and Koyambedu stood second with 39 complaints, showing the awareness among women about SSF and the confidence in the new women force.

The women in the Avadi commissionerate area came forward to get SSF assistance with 113 petitions while 47 pleas were made in Tambaram. A total of 200 complaints were received in Salem city, while the rural parts of the same district showed only 9 petitions.

According to police statistics, the SSF obtained 70 complaints in Chengalpet district, which is near Chennai, and mostly urbanised with the movement of women and children going to schools, colleges and jobs, especially in the IT sector.

In Tiruvallur, the number of visits to hotspots was only 653, which is less compared to other northern districts and the number of complaints, too, was only 25, since most of the urban areas come under the Avadi commissionerate.

In the other northern districts, Kallakurichi SSF got 70 complaints, while Vellore received 62 petitions. Thirupathur and Tiruvannamalai are not lagging behind but the complaints received in Ranipet district was only 17 and in Kanchipuram district, which has numerous temples and industries and ist visited by thousands of women every day, the SSF had visited only 324 hotspots and received just 11 complaints.

In the western zone, in the major city of Coimbatore, there were 257 petitions and only one resulting in filing of cases. In Namakkal, four cases were filed, while 102 complaints were given to SSF. Despite the SSF in Salem rural areas visiting 1,084 hotspots, the number of complaints received was only nine.

In the south, most of the complaints (124) were received from Theni district, Tenkasi showed 106, and Sivagangai recorded 100, while the number of complaints in Madurai was only 100, including the city and villages.

In the central zone, comprising the delta districts, Nagapattinam district SSF received 187 petitions, Tiruvarur, 101, and Mayiladuthurai, 108. In most of the southern districts, there is a reluctance among women to take the issues to the police, but more women from the delta districts are coming forward to seek help from the SSF.

In the first 70 days, the force has reached people in all parts of Tamil Nadu and its presence gives a sense of confidence and courage to the women who go out for education and employment in large numbers, compared to other states.

In addition, 43 persons with intellectual disabilities have been rescued and arrangements have been made for their medical treatment and rehabilitation. Further, 21 child marriages have been stopped and 105 children who had dropped out of school have been re-enrolled in educational institutions.

The government has accorded approval for the creation of 2,546 new posts in the SSF, including inspector general of police, 49 inspectors, two technical inspectors, 641 sub-inspectors of police and 1,843 constables. At present, 70 field units of the force are functioning across the state. The government is procuring 327 four-wheelers and 109 two-wheelers for their efficient functioning.

The government has also approved modern technological equipment, including body-worn cameras with real-time video streaming capability, and drones for surveillance in areas that are difficult to access.

To enable women and children to easily seek assistance during emergencies, the dedicated helpline number ‘1091’ has been notified for the SSF. Further, to ensure swift response and seamless coordination, the service has been integrated with the ‘112’ emergency response support system.