MUMBAI: Following the brutal rape of a 32-year-old woman in Sakinaka, Mumbai police have announced the formation of a special squad to deter sexual harassment of women in public places.
Nirbhaya Squadron is intended to “create fear in the minds of criminals and inspire respect for women,” said an internal circular for the force signed by Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale.
Police have also been linked to MPower, an organization that works in the mental health space, to advise victims of sexual assault and child sexual abuse, as well as juvenile offenders.
The Nirbhaya squad will be trained at all police stations and will consist of a female officer and two police officers, at least one of whom is a woman, in addition to a driver. They will be assigned a mobile patrol vehicle and the work of all these Nirbhaya squadrons will be supervised at the regional level by an assistant commissioner who will be a nodal officer.
“The squadron will undergo a two-day training and one of its responsibilities would be to gather information in the areas where the hostels, shelters, children’s homes or women’s orphanages are located. crime against women and set a patrol pattern, covering areas such as universities, playgrounds, movie theaters, gardens, shopping malls, markets, etc. “, the circular said. “Nirbhaya boxes” will be placed in schools and colleges where girls can submit their complaints to the staff to be addressed to them.
“The squad should get to the police station a list of people booked for sex offenses in the last five years and keep track of their movements,” Nagrale said.
The commissioner also instructed the squad to prepare a list of elderly women living alone in the jurisdiction of the police station and visit them to resolve their complaints.
The equipment will be trained in the use of electronic recording devices, such as pencil cameras, which can provide evidence.
The squadron should have a separate record to record the actions they have taken and the nodal officer should review the record. Each month, the squad that performs best would be rewarded by the commissioner.
Nirbhaya Squadron is intended to “create fear in the minds of criminals and inspire respect for women,” said an internal circular for the force signed by Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale.
Police have also been linked to MPower, an organization that works in the mental health space, to advise victims of sexual assault and child sexual abuse, as well as juvenile offenders.
The Nirbhaya squad will be trained at all police stations and will consist of a female officer and two police officers, at least one of whom is a woman, in addition to a driver. They will be assigned a mobile patrol vehicle and the work of all these Nirbhaya squadrons will be supervised at the regional level by an assistant commissioner who will be a nodal officer.
“The squadron will undergo a two-day training and one of its responsibilities would be to gather information in the areas where the hostels, shelters, children’s homes or women’s orphanages are located. crime against women and set a patrol pattern, covering areas such as universities, playgrounds, movie theaters, gardens, shopping malls, markets, etc. “, the circular said. “Nirbhaya boxes” will be placed in schools and colleges where girls can submit their complaints to the staff to be addressed to them.
“The squad should get to the police station a list of people booked for sex offenses in the last five years and keep track of their movements,” Nagrale said.
The commissioner also instructed the squad to prepare a list of elderly women living alone in the jurisdiction of the police station and visit them to resolve their complaints.
The equipment will be trained in the use of electronic recording devices, such as pencil cameras, which can provide evidence.
The squadron should have a separate record to record the actions they have taken and the nodal officer should review the record. Each month, the squad that performs best would be rewarded by the commissioner.