They should be given the strictest of punishments but security, too, should be beefed up inside trains. There can also be a case for emergency bright lights within these compartments and passengers, especially women, be told where they are placed
Photo for representational purpose
The Pushpak Express horror, where dacoits boarded a train, looted passengers and assaulted a young woman, needs to be a very shrill wake up call for the authorities. The train, which was travelling from Lucknow to Mumbai, saw eight dacoits boarding near Igatpuri and terrorising travellers.
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The incident has evoked widespread anger and disgust among people. It certainly raises the alarm on safety of women passengers.
Women passengers are especially vulnerable in long-distance trains. We need well-armed police in the bogies. Besides pulling chains, there is a need for alarms that can be connected straight to train drivers’ cabins and can ring in the train itself. Taking advantage of the darkness, late hours report said, the dacoits robbed, but even more shamefully assaulted a woman.
They should be given the strictest of punishments but security, too, should be beefed up inside trains. There can also be a case for emergency bright lights within these compartments and passengers, especially women, be told where they are placed.
Women are unsafe in long-distance trains. We have had reports of attacks in local trains in Mumbai. Buses are unsafe. At times, cab journeys have been perilous. Women need to own public spaces and, with that, public commuting. They have to be as safe as the next person, never mind the time they are commuting. Put in place technology and personnel when possible, so that they are empowered to “own” that mobile space. They have paid a fare like any other passenger; they have a right to a safe and secure commute. The Pushpak Express incident is enough to bring the bile up in persons. The point is what we learn and do after this, that will be a mirror about just how serious we are about women’s safety.
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