Context: Recent cases of violence against women in Unnao, Hathras, Budaun in Uttar Pradesh, shows the dismal condition of women's safety in the country.

Challenges to women safety:

• Apathy of law enforcement agencies: E.g. not registering an FIR & avoiding post mortem in cases of rape.
• Battling against skewed societal gender conditioning: like women should not step-out during the night without a company.
• Primitive mindset: lawlessness is overlooked and responsibility pinned, perversely, on the woman for ensuring her well-being.
• Rising rape cases: In 2019, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data show 88 rape cases were recorded every day in India with U.P. reporting the second-highest number at 3,065 cases.
  • Underestimation: As many rapes are not reported due to social stigma.
• Poor economic participation: Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data shows that
  • Women accounted for 10.7% of the workforce in 2019-20 and many lost jobs due to the pandemic.
  • By November 2020, men recovered most of their lost jobs but not women.

Way forward:

• Promote equal rights: by ensuring fear-free movement-day and night.
• Providing a safe environment: Government, police and family must step up their efforts to counter rising gender prejudices in society.

Conclusion: To expect women to stay indoors for their safety is to deny them their freedoms and rights.