Delhi Police has been asked to set up a dedicated “Pink Force” of trained women personnel to patrol schools, colleges, metro stations and other vulnerable locations across the capital.
Its strength, launch date, district-wise deployment, and patrol timings are yet to be announced. Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu on Tuesday asked the police to draw up the force on the lines of Goa Police’s Pink Force, with women personnel deployed at identified hotspots, particularly during vulnerable hours. On Monday, a six-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in central Delhi’s Kishanganj.
What Delhi’s Pink Force Will Do The force will have trained women personnel patrolling areas around schools, colleges and metro stations, besides other locations identified as vulnerable. The focus will be on a visible police presence and quick response, particularly during hours considered sensitive. Sandhu cited Goa Police’s Pink Force as the model for the Delhi unit. Goa’s force is used for patrolling and responding to incidents involving women and children. Women-only patrolling itself is not new to Delhi. Police have also been asked to continue action against harassment of women in public spaces under ‘Operation Shishtachar’. Patrols under the operation have been deployed around educational institutions, markets and transport hubs. The proposed Pink Force would operate alongside these existing measures. The announcement comes against a series of recent cases involving minors. The accused was arrested and sent to judicial custody. Complaints made during Delhi Police’s Jan Sunwai programme will also be digitally tracked, with every grievance to be acknowledged and acted upon within a defined timeline. Complaints relating to other government departments will be forwarded to the agency concerned. The Jan Sunwai programme has been running at police stations since June. The timeline within which complaints will have to be acted upon under the proposed digital system has not yet been specified. Police stations and beat officers have also been asked to increase foot and motorcycle patrols in crime-prone and high-footfall areas, particularly around schools, colleges, markets and transport hubs. Each police district will nominate a nodal officer and prepare a quarterly calendar for sessions in schools on the POCSO Act and child safety, cybercrime, substance abuse and road safety. Other directions covered drug trafficking, cybercrime and traffic management. Police stations have been asked to improve the handling of cybercrime complaints and preservation of digital evidence, while major congestion points are to see increased police presence and CCTV monitoring during peak hours. For police personnel, the Lieutenant Governor sought timely promotions, particularly in the lower ranks and among women personnel, and fixed-hour grievance hearings at police headquarters. Police residential colonies have also been asked to move towards a zero-waste model. The Pink Force itself remains at the planning stage.
The move comes after four separate cases of alleged rape or sexual assault involving minors reported across Delhi in about 10 days. The latest was reported on Monday, when a 17-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped by three men at Astha Kunj Park near Kalkaji Mandir. On September 16, a minor girl was allegedly sexually assaulted inside a shop in Sadar Bazar after she stepped out of her home to buy stationery. Earlier this month, a 16-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped and murdered in Swaroop Nagar. A 19-year-old was arrested and three minors were detained in the case. Police Complaints To Be Digitally Tracked The Pink Force was among several directions issued during Sandhu’s second visit to Delhi Police Headquarters since June 24. Police said this month that more than 1,300 sessions had been held and around 10,000 complaints resolved.
Police said the men allegedly posed as policemen before separating the girl from her male friend. One of the accused was later caught after an exchange of fire with police in which he suffered a bullet injury to his leg, police said. The new proposal is to bring such patrolling under a dedicated “Pink Force” structure. Police said residents caught the accused and handed him over.
Delhi Police has previously deployed women officers on scooters and beat patrols around schools, colleges, markets, metro stations and other public spaces.
