UPWARD GROWTH - Transit-oriented realty gets the nod from DDA

Feb 17 2015 : The Times of India (Delhi)
New Delhi:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Policy Gives Incentive To Residents Near Metro:

One of its most ambitious plans for vertical growth, transit-oriented development was approved by Delhi Development Authority on Monday. The policy incentivizes people living around Delhi Metro corridors for clubbing their lands and creating mixed-use, high-rise development pockets. Lakhs of Delhi's residents are expected to benefit and property rates along the Metro, already going at a premium, are expected to shoot. A TOD zone, which extends 500m on either side of an identified Delhi Metro corridor, allows landowners in the area to avail 400 FAR on redeveloping their land. With a minimum plot size of one hectare, a land-owner can come forward and submit his redevelopment plan, provided it meets certain criteria--20% of the space has to be reserved for roads and 20% for developing green spaces; the total built area must be 40%.

The focus of development will be on encouraging pedestrian movement. “The high-rises that will come up in a TOD zone will have one-room service apartments and spaces for buying daily groceries and essential items--everything within one building so that a person would have to leave it only for going to work,“ said a senior DDA official.

The Authority official said that this policy could come in handy for expansion of group housing societies. “ A group housing society near a Metro station could ideally sell a part of its FAR and raise enough money to expand vertically , as could a group of property owners. The impact on individual owners and plan ning of Delhi overall is hard to overstate,“ the official said.

A TOD zone will come up on the lines of a western city , where setbacks and boundary walls around buildings won't be allowed. By disallowing boundary walls, planners hope to improve ground visibility and avoid segregated alleys and corners considered unsafe for women. Water will be recycled and, because of the high-density of people living on less land, areas around will be set free for purposes of recreation or creation of more colleges and hospitals.

“We are in the process of setting the trend for future development in the city . We're basically trying to incentivize intensive development in the city and promote vertical growth, taking town planning from traditional to modern models,“ Balvinder Kumar, vice-chairperson, Delhi Development Authority , said.

Demand Nirbhaya—fearless—cities

Author: Anumita Roychowdhury

Published in: Down To earth

Posted on: 6 Mar, 2013

Catalysing safe design for public spaces should be among the top priorities to make cities safe for women, children and elderly

I first let this pass without comment—the Rs 1,000 crore Nirbhaya fund for women’s safety proposed in the Union Bdget. Many have glossed over this with a reverent salute to quickly move on to the hard numbers of this stark accounting document. Others are angry, outraged, and dismissive of this fund as tokenism and populism with no clarity of mandate. But I read that paragraph in the budget speech once again.

My attention was riveted to this observation: “As more women enter public spaces—for education or work or access to services or leisure—there are more reports of violence against them.” The operative word here is “public spaces”. Of course, Chidambaram has used this literally to state the obvious. But if we were to join the dots to write the terms of reference for the ministry of women and child development and other ministries to define the scope and structure of the ‘Nirbhaya fund’, then catalysing safe design for “public spaces” would be among the top priorities.

Put your ear to the global buzz on urban planning and design to know that “a public realm for the people” is the new mantra to keep all safe and secure in a city. Will India ever include this agenda in the “collective responsibility to ensure the dignity and safety of women” – as preached in the budget speech? The high decibel, high-powered meetings on gender safety that had boiled over immediately after the December 16 gang rape case in Delhi looked narrowly at the state’s responsibility only as installing safety gadgets in buses and revamping police surveillance.

Very few have understood the value of the principle that seeks to revitalize cities to bring people to “public spaces” by design to keep an eye on streets and buildings. For centuries, we have designed our cities in this way; but we went off the track when history collided with cars. We are no longer designing our cities on human scale to foster human contact, mingling spaces, meeting points that make all safe and happy. But macho cars have muscled in a change in urban design that isolates, and creates lonely distances, unsafe fringes, and dehumanised spaces that foster crime.

It was, therefore, a welcome surprise when DDA-UTTIPEC sensibly put out the guidelines on Safety, Freedom, and Respect for Women, to demand that urban planning and design must be combined with policing, legislation and justice. The new guidelines have asked the city planners to get rid of deserted unwatched places such as flyovers, signal-free corridors, subways, lonely fringes, gated communities and their walls. It asked for inclusive streets, urban and landscape design. It’s message, ‘build cities for people not cars’.

This idea was further reinforced when the DDA-UTTIPEC launched transit-oriented development guidelines in February to pitch for compact and mixed use development to empower all to walk, cycle, hop on and off buses and the Metro, and make “public spaces” less vulnerable. This resonates well with the national habitat standards for transportation of the ministry of urban development that has also asked for dense and mixed activities, smaller and open building block sizes, permeable streets made walkable, accessible and safe.

Unfortunately, these wise filters have not yet reached the real estate industry, urban and transport planning and construction bodies, project approval agencies and the grassroots city residents – all are partners in the original mess. Several new development and redevelopment projects in Delhi and other cities and new townships are coming up insulated from this big idea.

If the Union Budget is committing funds for women’s safety, it has to get this big picture right. Budget cannot remain an old school accounting system when the governance challenge has transformed. Why else would the budget sanction funds for cities to buy buses under the flagship JNNURM programme without linking the strategy to transforming infrastructure for public transport?

The JNNURM has already made the mistake of rolling out buses in cities without pushing for public transport infrastructure and letting cities splurge on roads, flyovers and multilevel parking for cars. Cities desperately need good buses and also reliable bus service. But this ill-designed programme has ensured buses don’t get space, or have speed, are unsafe, poorly maintained, have poor access, pay more taxes than cars and Metro, and pay more for fuel than cars. They have killed the big idea and ensured that the new buses make no difference to the way people decide to travel. What a wasteful investment!

This has to change. We need strong fiscal signals for a whole new way of designing our cities and our mobility for all to stay healthy, happy and safe.

Very few have understood the value of the principle that seeks to revitalize cities to bring people to “public spaces” by design to keep an eye on streets and buildings. For centuries, we have designed our cities in this way; but we went off the track when history collided with cars. We are no longer designing our cities on human scale to foster human contact, mingling spaces, meeting points that make all safe and happy. But macho cars have muscled in a change in urban design that isolates, and creates lonely distances, unsafe fringes, and dehumanised spaces that foster crime.

It was, therefore, a welcome surprise when DDA-UTTIPEC sensibly put out the guidelines on Safety, Freedom, and Respect for Women, to demand that urban planning and design must be combined with policing, legislation and justice. The new guidelines have asked the city planners to get rid of deserted unwatched places such as flyovers, signal-free corridors, subways, lonely fringes, gated communities and their walls. It asked for inclusive streets, urban and landscape design. It’s message, ‘build cities for people not cars’.

This idea was further reinforced when the DDA-UTTIPEC launched transit-oriented development guidelines in February to pitch for compact and mixed use development to empower all to walk, cycle, hop on and off buses and the Metro, and make “public spaces” less vulnerable. This resonates well with the national habitat standards for transportation of the ministry of urban development that has also asked for dense and mixed activities, smaller and open building block sizes, permeable streets made walkable, accessible and safe.

Unfortunately, these wise filters have not yet reached the real estate industry, urban and transport planning and construction bodies, project approval agencies and the grassroots city residents – all are partners in the original mess. Several new development and redevelopment projects in Delhi and other cities and new townships are coming up insulated from this big idea.

If the Union Budget is committing funds for women’s safety, it has to get this big picture right. Budget cannot remain an old school accounting system when the governance challenge has transformed. Why else would the budget sanction funds for cities to buy buses under the flagship JNNURM programme without linking the strategy to transforming infrastructure for public transport?

The JNNURM has already made the mistake of rolling out buses in cities without pushing for public transport infrastructure and letting cities splurge on roads, flyovers and multilevel parking for cars. Cities desperately need good buses and also reliable bus service. But this ill-designed programme has ensured buses don’t get space, or have speed, are unsafe, poorly maintained, have poor access, pay more taxes than cars and Metro, and pay more for fuel than cars. They have killed the big idea and ensured that the new buses make no difference to the way people decide to travel. What a wasteful investment!

This has to change. We need strong fiscal signals for a whole new way of designing our cities and our mobility for all to stay healthy, happy and safe.

Jagori: Women Safety Audit Report for various locations around Delhi

Download below:
http://jagori.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/IS-THIS-OUR-CITY.pdf

Source: http://www.safedelhi.in/safe_delhi_campaign.html 

Women recount horror stories, say helpline, PCR cops don’t help

NEW DELHI: Business management student Ritika Sharma's regular evening commute became a nightmare when three men began harassing her and her friend on a moving bus. But her attempts to reach the Delhi Police helpline were futile. And even when she decided to publicly reprimand the culprits, fellow passengers offered no help.

SONU MEHTA/HT PHOTOBlack Day was observed by protesters at Jantar Mantar on Thursday.

Sharma's is not an isolated case. Several women who have in the past been victims of sexual harassment feel helpless. Not only are helplines busy, but many deserted stretches have little or no police presence.

"My college is in Dwarka and there have been so many times when I’ve been stalked. I’ve tried to contact police's helpline, but the number is usually busy," said Arti (name changed), a student of Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU).

Delhi Police officers, however, claim that all their helplines were functioning smoothly. "We have several helplines where women can call in times of distress. We always take action in case of complaint," said a senior police official.

But this isn't the only thing these women complained of. Many also said the police officials in PCR vans also refuse to help. "A few men passed lewd comments at my daughter and me when we got off at the Chhatarpur Metro Station a few days ago. When I approached a nearby PCR van, the officials told me that as there was no evidence, they could not do much," said Mamta Misra, a resident of Vasant Kunj. AT JANTAR MANTAR A modest group of protesters continued to camp at Jantar Mantar. Many of them had called for a Bharat Bandh on Thursday, but the bandh got little response. "People have proved their indifference to this cause. Once 15-20 days pass, people begin to lose interest," said Anil Kumar, a protester.

However, for the students from Lady Hardinge Medical College, an attempt to demand justice for the victim was thwarted by the police. Their silent walk in protest to their college with placards was not allowed as the police 'had orders to prohibit any form of protest outside Jantar Mantar'.

Source: Hindustan Times, Delhi Edition, 04-01-2013

TOI: UTTIPEC Prepares Action Points For Women’s Security

Planners mull safety agenda
UTTIPEC Prepares Action Points For Women’s Security
Indrani Basu TNN

New Delhi: A team of urban designers from planning body Unified Traffic & Transportation (Planning & Engineering) Centre have submitted a draft for action points on women’s safety and sent it to the lieutenant governor and chief secretary. These action points include urban development, educational and enforcement measures for the city and a detailed technical report with guidelines and conceptualization plans for physical interventions is expected to be put up in the LG’s next governing body meeting scheduled in January.
The 10-page document provides pointers and action points for various government agencies. These are divided into broad categories of immediate, mid-term and long-term measures. One of the immediate measures includes street lighting in major areas. The team has recommended lighting according to requirement. 

The team has recommended introduction of hawking zones and street markets in Dhaula Kuan, Dwarka, NH-8 and all arterials as they are ‘unwatched streets’. 

“We have suggested the creation of Multi-Utility Zone for street vendors by simple markings and bollards a la New York, especially where roads are wider than 45m. This increases ‘eyes on streets’ and makes these areas more active,” said a senior UTTIPEC official.

The team suggested making transport safer by lighting bus stops, removing the barrier advertisement panel which may conceal criminals and locating hawkers next to bus stops to ensure they don’t become deserted. 

Urging civic agencies to stop proposing flyovers and grade separator projects, the team has called them “nothing but rape dens which don’t relieve traffic congestion in the long term”. The team has asked for slowing of vehicles on signal-free roads at night to reduce chances of criminals whizzing away after committing a crime. 

Mid- and long- term steps were also proposed. The suggestions include a revision in resettlement policy, saying that poor should be provided housing in the city and not outside. 

Planners are recommending that women’s safety issues should be incorporated in Local Area Plans, transportation infrastructure projects and influence area plans, as suggested by studies by women’s rights groups.

DRAFT GUIDELINES

QUICK FIXES

• Illumination of all streets Letting vendors set up shop in deserted areas Safer bus stops with increased bus frequency, and removal of panel advertisements that can conceal criminals Increased patrolling in vulnerable areas 

GRADUAL CHANGES

• GPS in autos and taxis Centralized autorickshaws like Radio Tuk-Tuk (Gurgaon) and G-Auto (Gujarat) for increased safety Redefinition of sexual crimes 

LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS

• Redesign of roads as per UTTIPEC guidelines; more toilets for women 
• Make the whole city vibrant so that there’s round-the-clock activity 
• Revision in resettlement policy so that poor are housed in the city & local area plans incorporate women’s safety issues 
• Police should be trained to respect women and handle sexual offences better; policing infrastructure should be upgraded 
• Awareness about women’s safety should be generated in slums

See Also:  ACTION POINTS FOR "HOW TO MAKE DELHI SAFER FOR WOMEN"

Signal Free Roads No Good- say Traffic Police. Claim they have Worsened Traffic Situation; TOI reviews 5 Such Roads

Dark stretches a haven for criminals. DANGER AHEAD: Police Identify 1300 odd Roads in National Capital.

Media Suggestions: Ways to make WOMEN Safe

Source: Economic Times, Delhi, 30 Dec 2012, page 08.

THE TIPPING POINT : MAKE CITIES OF WOMEN, FOR WOMEN

Rape has to be seen as an issue of masculinities, of how our societies are raising men. The rapist isn’t a mythical figure — he lives next door.

: : Jasmeen Patheja : : 

The Delhi gang-rape survivor — I am calling her a survivor though she is dead because I pledge to stay outraged, to not forget a few months later, to follow this through. She is going to remind us of the way forward in combating sexual violence. 

Yes, for once, the media made a shift in the way they shared her story — by respecting her and her family’s right to remain anonymous. 

The incident jolted citizens’ conscience. Apart from the gravity of the assault (now murder), we are shocked by the familiarity of the circumstances — the cinema hall, the 9.30 pm bus, returning home with a friend, etc. She really could have been any one of us. 

There was, without doubt, an outpouring of emotions like never witnessed before. The government, too, after a long spell of silence, lathis and water cannons, finally expressed “empathy” with the survivor and her family. The anger, outrage and protests — which continue — represent the tipping point. We are saying enough is enough. Our cities need to be made safe. 

EMPATHY ISN’T ENOUGH.

 Our cities will be safer when we acknowledge women as citizens. We must ask, “Whose city?” Can we imagine a city of women? A city for women? We need to start looking at/ designing/ building the city as a place of women instead of focusing on protecting women — without perpetuating victimhood. 

In the first place, all stakeholders — from bystanders to urban planners to women and men — must take a pledge on what they could do individually to make our cities and towns safer. Pledge your role in making your city safe. 
To the filmmakers: How do you construct masculinity? 
To the parents: Will you ask daughters to play football? 

Make that pledge, the Safe City Pledge. 

We, as women, are brought up around warnings: be careful; don’t attract attention to yourself. We are taught to have a fear-based relationship with our city. Public places are not for leisure and pleasure. In my ideal city I want to be in a park and take a nap without feeling threatened. Sometimes we just love to sit, stand, walk and talk without looking available. What makes a group of boys play football on a field and not girls? 

SAFETY AS TOP PRIORITY. 

For the government and all other stakeholders, building safe cities has to be a priority issue and they have to factor it in even while designing our cities — mere surveillance cameras, untinted windows and fear of punishment are not enough. Some of our elected heads have attributed crimes against women in cities to the floating population from villages who have migrated in search of jobs. Such stereotyping is worrying because men rape from across socio-economic backgrounds. This means the issue of safer cities and towns has to be addressed in a holistic way from multiple perspectives. 

The usual refrain is: “Zamana kharab hai (times have changed for the worse). Don’t go out at night. You are in danger of being molested and raped and mistreated.” Such warnings that women grow up with alienate them from our streets and we end up living forever in fear of becoming a victim. What we need instead is the creation of visibility for women in our cities which will in turn result in a lot more of familiarity and, therefore, safety. So ask what makes a place unsafe and tackle that. 

This incident has brought focus to the issue of sexual violence that makes it to the news and creates empathy. As I write, there is a rape going on somewhere — unprotested, even unreported. I hope that the Delhi gang rape is an example in our memory that makes us as citizens pledge to make a change. 

NO RITUALISTIC MEASURES, PLEASE.

The Centre and state governments have to actively involve themselves in the process of making cities safe and share ownership in the issue of building safe cities. 

They can no longer afford to deal with the issue in a simplistic/ tokenistic way it has often done — like untinted windows, 11 pm shut down, questioning the character of the survivor, etc. 

Statements of political leaders have been discouraging, flippant, dismissive, even lacking genuine empathy — be it that of lawmaker Abhijit Mukherjee who called protesters “dented and painted” women or that of home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde who compared anti-gang rape protesters to Maoists. 

We are asking you to make a pledge. Contribute and make our cities and towns safer. What is actually in order is an attitudinal change and that comes only thanks to sustained dialogue and campaigning. It is true the death of the 23-yearold has put the spotlight on crimes committed against women in India in a far sharper way than any other incident has done before, but what is key is to sustain the momentum and not let this incident slip into short-term public memory. 

I am really glad that the response of the people in our cities has been tremendous to the extent that the government of this country had to take note of the situation. I often meet people from other countries — there is a resonance in conversations. There are conversations of rejecting an ingrained sense of blame and guilt in tackling violence against women. The idea that there is “no such thing as asking for it”. No woman of any age, colour or character ever deserves to be sexually violated or what some might lightly call “eve-teased”. Rape and sexual violence have to be seen as an issue of masculinities, of how our societies are raising men. The rapist isn’t a mythical figure — or a faraway demon. He lives here in this very society. 
    

Make it happen. 
(As told to Ullekh NP)

The writer is the founder of Blank Noise, an art project that campaigns against harassment of women.
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/delhi-gang-rape-need-to-question-how-societies-are-raising-men/articleshow/17811926.cms

Rs1400 crore to PWD to revamp Transferred Roads - Will New Roads being Constructed be "Safe" for All?

Rs.1400 crore to PWD's kitty to revamp Transferred Roads from MCD.

Will these roads follow the UTTIPEC Street Design Guidelines (issued in 2009) so that they are safe and user friendly to all road users such as street vendors, pedestrians, women and children?
Time will Tell.

NOTE: In 2009, the UTTIPEC had issued Street Design Guidelines to be followed on all city’s roads to make them safe and user friendly to all road users such as street vendors, pedestrians, women and children. The guidelines also provide ways in which persons with disabilities could be made to feel safe in negotiating a street.

See Also:ACTION POINTS FOR "HOW TO MAKE DELHI SAFER FOR WOMEN"

Signal Free Roads No Good- say Traffic Police. Claim they have Worsened Traffic Situation; TOI reviews 5 Such Roads

Dark stretches a haven for criminals. DANGER AHEAD: Police Identify 1300 odd Roads in National Capital.

दैनिक जागरण - सिग्नल-फ्री रोड का साइड इफेक्ट है अपराध में इजाफा!

राजू सजवान, नई दिल्ली

पिछले कुछ सालों से दिल्ली की सड़कों को सिग्नल फ्री बनाने पर करोड़ों रुपये खर्च किए जा चुके हैं, लेकिन ये सिग्नल फ्री रोड हाल ही में हुए सामूहिक दुष्कर्म जैसे अपराधों का कारण बनते जा रहे हैं। यह किसी निजी या स्वयंसेवी संगठन की राय नहीं है, बल्कि दिल्ली के यातायात एवं परिवहन की योजना बनाने वाली एकीकृत एजेंसी यूटीपैक का मानना है कि फ्लाइओवर और सिग्नल न होने के कारण चलती गाड़ियों में बलात्कार जैसी घटनाएं होती हैं।

यूटीपैक द्वारा सार्वजनिक स्थलों पर महिलाओं की सुरक्षा को लेकर गाइडलाइंस बनाई जा रही हैं। इस कवायद के दौरान यह तथ्य यूटीपैक के समक्ष आया है। यूटीपैक के सदस्यों ने एक अध्ययन में पाया कि तेज रफ्तार से चलती गाड़ियों के भीतर हो रही घटनाओं को साथ चलते वाहन चालक देख नहीं पाते। दिल्ली के राष्ट्रीय राजमार्ग आठ या दोनों रिंग रोड पर इस तरह की आपराधिक वारदातें भी पिछले कुछ सालों में रिपोर्ट की गई हैं।

यूटीपैक ने सार्वजनिक स्थलों पर महिलाओं की सुरक्षा को लेकर बन रही गाइडलाइंस के ड्राफ्ट में इसे शामिल किया है और प्रस्ताव रखा है कि दिल्ली के प्रमुख चौराहों पर जहां सिग्नल हटा दिए गए हैं, वहां सिग्नल लगाए जाएं, ताकि गाड़ियों की रफ्तार थम सके। सिग्नल पर गाड़ी रुकने के कारण साथ खड़े वाहन चालक अंदर हो रही घटना को देख कर रोक सकें या पुलिस को सूचित कर सकें।

अपने ड्राफ्ट में यूटीपैक ने अब दिल्ली में फ्लाइओवर बनाने या सिग्नल फ्री रोड बनाने पर रोक लगाने का प्रस्ताव रखा है। इसके अलावा रात के समय फ्लाइओवर बंद कर गाड़ियों को नीचे से गुजरने का प्रस्ताव रखा है, ताकि नीचे भीड़भाड़ होने पर ऐसी वारदात को देखा जा सके। इसके अलावा सड़क के किनारे एक व्यवस्थित तरीके से रेहड़ी पटरी वालों को जगह देने की भी वकालत की गई है, ताकि सड़क पर चहलपहल रहे या ये रेहड़ी पटरी वाले ऐसी घटनाओं को रोकने में मददगार साबित हो सकें। यूटीपैक ने दिल्ली की सुनसान सड़कों पर चहल-पहल बढ़ाने के लिए अर्बन प्लानिंग में सुधार की गुंजाइश बताई है। सड़कों के किनारे रेहड़ी, पटरी के अलावा छोटी-छोटी दुकानें होनी चाहिए, जिन्हें रात को बंद करने जैसी बाध्यता नहीं होनी चाहिए। रात के वक्त इन दुकानों को खोलने के लिए प्रेरित करना चाहिए। ऐसे इलाकों में रैन बसेरा या सेमी हॉकिंग जोन बनाने होंगे।

यूटीपैक के एक अधिकारी ने बताया कि अभी जागौरी जैसे संगठनों की मदद से यह ड्राफ्ट तैयार किया जा रहा है, इस पर अलग-अलग संगठनों और लोगों से राय ली जाएगी और बाद में सरकार की ओर से अधिसूचना जारी की जाएगी और दिल्ली की सभी एजेंसियों को महिला सेफ्टी गाइडलाइंस की पालना करनी होगी।
http://epaper.jagran.com/story1.aspx?id=24024&boxid=108224832&ed_date=28-dec-2012&ed_code=4&ed_page=6

See Also:

ACTION POINTS FOR "HOW TO MAKE DELHI SAFER FOR WOMEN"

Signal Free Roads No Good- say Traffic Police. Claim they have Worsened Traffic Situation; TOI reviews 5 Such Roads

Dark stretches a haven for criminals. DANGER AHEAD: Police Identify 1300 odd Roads in National Capital.

FIRSTPOST - Why urban planning will make cities safer for women

by Shruti Dhapola Dec 28, 2012

The movement has sought to highlight the violence and sexual harassment that women face on a daily basis. But the biggest question that has perhaps got drowned out in the cacophony of demands for castrations and death penalty is how can we ensure the safety of women in urban areas. Reuters

The recent gangrape and assault of a 23-year-old woman in the city of New Delhi has turned into a watershed moment of sorts for India. New Delhi has been rocked by massive protests with college students, housewives, working women taking to the streets, braving policelathi-charge, water cannons.

The movement has sought to highlight the violence and sexual harassment that women face on a daily basis. But the biggest question that has perhaps got drowned out in the cacophony of demands for castrations and death penalty is how can we ensure the safety of women in urban areas. Is it possible to imagine cities in India where women can roam the streets without fear for their safety, free from the risk of being ‘eve-teased’ ?

Firstpost spoke to Sameera Khan who is one of the co-authors, of the book Why Loiter? Women and Risk on Mumbai Streets which looks at why women need to claim public spaces and how urban planning can go a long way in ensuring the safety of women in the streets. Excerpts from an email interview.

First what is your reaction to the protests in Delhi and some of the more vitriolic demands being made by the protesters?

The volley of public protests in Delhi have been absolutely marvellous and quite heartening. Even after facing an inconsiderate and inhumane government (and parlimentarians referring to the protesters as “dented and painted women”) and a hostile police force (that dealt with them so harshly), the protesters just did not give up. I suspect that this has probably been one of the largest ever demonstrations seen anywhere in the world against rape and sexual violence.

Women hold placards as they shout slogans from a flag post near the Rashtrapati Bhavan. AP

I agree that some of the demands made by the protesters particularly regarding death penalty and chemical castration have been extreme — and I doubt that will help stop rape (it might I fear, in fact, push rapists to make sure they kill their victims) and I do feel stronger laws, impartial investigation, speedier processes and higher conviction rates is what we need, not the death penalty.What is needed now is to broaden that protest to include other rape survivors, justice for them as well, and also rape survivors who are not urban or middle class but from tribal, low caste, distant parts of the country. It should also focus on all other types of violence against women (such as domestic violence) and violence against other minorities and marginalised groups. We should also focus on changing the general attitude to women in this country – both within families and communities and also to women in public – an attitude that thinks of women as inferior beings, as property, as bearers of community and family honour and shame.

The protests bring attention to sexual violence and rape that is much needed. We can only hope it provides a momentum to much needed changes in law, justice delivery and attitudes.


In this particular case, the one term we’ve seen thrown around a lot is Rape Capital as far as Delhi is concerned. Do you feel this is a fair term to use for a city, especially when rape is not just a Delhi problem?

Rape is not just a Delhi problem. It’s a problem all over. By labelling a city as ‘rape capital’ we are using language rather carelessly and loosely and this can have larger implications.

One, that it undermines a deeper examination of the problem (why does this happen here, who are the perpetrators, what can we do about it etc – it all gets diminished to ‘rape capital’ hain nah, toh aisa hi hoga yahan) And two, it makes it very difficult for all other women to then actively access the city and its public spaces at all times. The term ‘rape capital’ then starts policing the movements of all women and that is the real danger when we reduce such an event to one glib sound-byte label/phrase.

Some argue that Bombay is safe for women. In the course of your research for Why Loiterwould you say that you found this perception to be true? Or does Bombay also suffer from similar problems as far as Delhi is concerned?

Bombay city is relatively friendlier to women than Delhi but this doesn’t mean there are no crimes against women in Bombay – in fact that crime graph seems to be only rising. So things are changing. More importantly what Shilpa Phadke, Shilpa Ranade and I tried to point out in our book Why Loiter: Women & Risk on Mumbai Streets (Penguin Books, 2011) is that even in a city like Bombay, women are at best commuters through public space – moving from point A to point B – they cannot lay claim to the city as citizens. Bombay women too have to actively strategise when they access public space – in where they go, what time they are out, who they are with, what they wear etc – and constantly establish a sense of purpose when accessing public space and always manufacture an image of being respectable women.

As far as urban planning in India is concerned, what do you think are some of the biggest problems when it comes to women’s safety? How is it even possible to plan cities that are safe for women?

While doing research over three years for the Gender and Space project – the research which finally led to our book – and as we continue to interact and talk to young women at workshops that we do on gender and public space all over, we ask women what makes them feel unsafe in the city. Sometimes we even ask them to draw maps of areas, streets, neighbourhoods where they feel unsafe and safe.

And what they tell us is really a simple and practical checklist: bad/poor/low lighting in public spaces makes women feel unsafe and vulnerable; so too things that make them feel caged such as tall fencing in a park or fencing on a long stretch of pavement where they have no clear sight lines and cannot escape in case of an attack. Also no public toilets or closed public toilets makes women feel unwanted in public space (“they don’t care enough for our presence or they don’t expect us to be there , so they don’t provide for it”)

Women want to be able to see bodies on the street – ideally crowds which are mixed with men and women; empty streets and closed shops are perceived as being scary; they want some activity to take place on the streets constantly such as hawkers selling chai, book sellers on the pavements, vegetable vendors, men, women, children walking on the street, etc. Neighbourhoods that are mixed zoning — residential and commercial with shop activity — where the streets are always alive even till late night with some action are preferred. So politicians and cops who say that if everyone is home and we close down all activities in public by a certain hour and that will make things safe are totally wrong in their understanding.

Does a more sensitive police force help in stopping violence against women?

What we need is a responsive and sensitive police force who takes even complaints of everyday street harassment seriously. If they respond promptly and take the right action on all incidents of violence against women — whether it is a small or a big incident — then they make a larger statement that they do not tolerate this kind of behaviour/ this type of crime and that they will investigate it and get it tried and push for better conviction rates. That can help a great deal – for perpetrators to know they will be dealt with severely and for women to know that when they approach the police, they will help them get justice.

Last in light of this particular rape case, a sense of paranoia has spread for women thanks to the constant media coverage. What would you say women need to do to reclaim public spaces?

Women in this country by law have a right to be in public space. When incidents like this happen and are publicised on a large scale, they unfortunately make victims of all women. All women are then told directly or indirectly that they are in danger and need to be indoors. It is shaming and policing the survivors while the perpetrators roam free. What a terrible message to give both the perpetrators and the survivors.

Women need to be out there. They need to reclaim public spaces with their bodies. We need more women in public space (not less) to make all women feel safer and more comfortable. We must demand and lobby for changes in the city/country that make us feel safer but we must not stop ourselves from being out there.

A city is full of stimulating things and great opportunities and women have every right to enjoy them. At anytime of the day or night. In any sort of clothing. With anyone they want. No questions asked.

Source: http://www.firstpost.com/living/why-urban-planning-will-make-cities-safer-for-women-571176.html

ACTION POINTS FOR "HOW TO MAKE DELHI SAFER FOR WOMEN"

DOWNLOAD FROM:
http://uttipec.nic.in/writereaddata/linkimages/9533624611.pdf
OR
http://www.slideshare.net/UTTIPECworks/women-safety-action-points-27-dec-2012. 

Action Points for Making Delhi Safe for Women from UTTIPECworks

UTTIPEC in consultation with Jagori & ITrans, has compiled the attached 10-page Document to provide some helpful pointers & Action points for various Govt Agencies on what & how to take up Actions on priority basis, to make Delhi Safer for Women!! The same has been forwarded to few top officials of the city.

Do Share, Download and Use....And provide us your suggestions also!!

Inviting suggestions on amendments to Criminal Laws Relating to Safety and Security of Women

Mind of a Rapist: It’s not mental, but CRIMINAL

Malathy Iyer TNN

Mumbai: Why do men commit rape? Friends and family of Ram Singh, the 33-year-old Delhi driver who is the main accused in the gang rape of a physiotherapist, have used words such as ‘mental’ and ‘volatile’ to describe the moment he transgressed all legal and social limits. But experts are clear: rapists are criminals who believe they can get away with the crime.
Padma Deosthali of NGO Cehat that works with rape victims said, “It is important to make a point that rape is an act of violence, and the intention is to humiliate, hurt, put down or get back or teach a lesson to a girl/woman.’’
Do rapists have psychological or personality disorders? Far from it, she said, adding, “They know that they can get away with it.’’
Psychological profiling of rapists done in North America and South Africa say rapists were possibly exposed to violence early in childhood. Rape is an experience of power over women (see box).
Closer home, a five-yearlong study done by Swanchetan, an NGO that works in the field of mental health, among 242 inmates of Delhi’s Tihar Jail showed that 70% of the accused were repeat offenders. The study said the offenders had a certain level of confidence when he/they attacked the women. Moreover, Swanchetan said the rapists had committed multiple rapes — “on an average at least four” — before they were caught.
Dr B N Gangadhar, professor of psychiatry from NIMHANS, Bangalore, is against using psychological or sociological labels for rapists. “There is nothing psychiatric about a rapist. In fact, a person with a psychiatric illness will never commit a rape. It is clearly a criminal mind that has decided to gratify oneself despite the norms of society.’’
Dr Sunil Mittal from the Delhi Psychiatry Centre said rapist are perverted people who revel in the fact that they get away with it. “Thrill for them is violence and aggression along with sex. He feels powerful with sexual assault,’’ said Dr Mittal. He added that rapists are possibly people who cannot have a normal sexual relationship. “He cannot make any intellectual contribution to a relationship, choosing sexual aggression instead,’’ he added.
Mumbai-based psychiatrist Dr H Shetty sees the increasing trend of violence against women as being a part of a larger societal problem. “India suffers from chronic disaster syndrome. There are rising costs of living, insecurity at the workplace, loss of faith in the system, etc. At the same time, people see personalities getting away with big crimes. A malnourished body gets attacked by various mircrobes. A society that is malnourished will see rise in such crimes against women.’’
towards partners and having transactional sex (paying for sex). This is rooted in men viewing women as sexual objects, who should be conquered.
(Source: Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes or Cehat)

Source: Times of India Dec 20 2012.

Chartered buses thrive as DTC disappears at night

Rumu Banerjee TNN

New Delhi: Flagging a chartered bus in the evening is a necessity in many parts of Delhi due to inadequate DTC and cluster bus services, transport officials say.
In fact, Munirka, Dwarka, Nehru Place, Vasant Kunj, Dhaula Kuan, Badarpur and Malviya Nagar are lucrative areas for unauthorized chartered buses that make school runs during the day and ferry passengers at night. As the bus frequency dips late in the evening, chartered buses are the only ride home for many commuters.
A senior government official said, “There are 6,455 DTC buses on 517 routes, working in shifts. During the evenings, though, especially late nights, bus schedules are not maintained and the waiting period gets longer.” Lack of information on schedules adds to the problem.

Complaints of DTC and cluster buses not plying on routes late at night, especially where chartered buses are to be found in large numbers, have been filed time and again but the authorities are yet to take action. 

“The lack of any information on the bus schedule, so that the commuter can make an informed decision, is a major problem for those travelling by DTC or cluster buses,” said Radha Krishnan, a daily commuter.
The Delhi government had last year promised to install passenger information systems (PIS) in all its bus
shelters. The project is still pending. In the first phase, 500 bus shelters in the NDMC area were to get the PIS. So far, only around 100 shelters have got the system. Sources in the transport department said work on the project had almost come to a standstill.
The project, taken up by DIMTS (Delhi integrated multi-modal transit system), was implemented in September last year. The idea was to use GPS information from DTC and cluster buses, and make it available to commuters.
Electronic boards are meant to provide information on the arrival time of buses. Coordinating arrival and departure times with bus routes from the numerous depots in the city and passing on correct information to passengers is imperative for the proper functioning of this system.
So far, PIS display boards have been installed at the Ambedkar Nagar-Moolchand BRT between Delhi Gate and Ambedkar Nagar Terminal, along the route taken by buses 419, 423, 521 and 522. But even these few boards are not fully functional.
DIMTS claims DTC hasn’t provided them with the information, so only cluster bus data is flashed in the PIS, but DTC claims that it will give the required information soon. “While boards have been installed, the information from all bus depots is not available all the time,” said the official.

(Source: Times of India, 20 Dec 2012; pg 4)

Delhi's History of Rape

Ghastly rapes city’s undoing for long.

Dwaipayan Ghosh & Smriti Singh TNN


New Delhi: It was not the first time that Delhi woke up to a spine-chilling rape. The capital has had a long history of such crimes.
On October 6, 2003, a 17-year-old Delhi University student was gang-raped at Buddha Jayanti Park by four men of the President’s Bodyguard. Harpreet Singh and Satender Singh had raped the girl while Kuldeep Singh and Manish Kumar stood guard. A hue and cry led to the arrest of Harpreet and the others. Recently, all
four were convicted: Harpreet and Satender got life terms while Kuldeep and Manish got 10 years in jail.
The same year, another ghastly rape was reported from the Shanti Mukund Hospital in east Delhi. On September 7, a nurse on duty at the east Delhi hospital was raped in the middle of the night by a ward boy. He also gouged out her right eye and wounded the left one. The accused Bura was convicted and sentenced to life term.
Perhaps Delhi Police’s biggest failure till date has been its inability to solve the vexing Siri Fort rape case in which a Swiss national, a 35-year-old filmmaker, was abducted from outside Siri Fort Auditorium on October 3, 2003, and then raped in a moving car. The Delhi Police pressed over 10,000 of its men and the door-to-door investigation across south Delhi led to thousands being detained. Finally, a closure report was filed, with police claiming that they could not trace a single suspect.
After a lull of two years, the Dhaula Kuan gang rape case in 2005, in which a rape took place in a moving car, led policymakers to review security in the city.
On May 8, a 20-year-old DU student from Mizoram was abducted by four people in a car early in the morning. They finally dumped her near a gurdwara in south Delhi after raping her.
Five days later, one Ajit Singh Katiyar, a driver of a Noida-based call centre, was arrested amidst cries that cops were goofing up the case by failing to arrest the other accused. The court has convicted the lone accused and 14 years jail term was awarded to him. The cops though never arrested the three other accused.
In 2010, another gang rape, yet again of a girl from the northeast shocked Delhiites. The police came under scrutiny and it was alleged that a weak PCR positioning and weak understanding of English by men in the control room led to the message being flashed late.
On November 26, 2010, a young BPO employee was walking towards her home in Moti village near Dhaula Kuana early morning along with one of her colleagues after being dropped off on the main road by her cab when four persons in a vehicle abducted her and took turns to rape her. Two Haryana men, Shamshad and Usman, were arrested. The case is pending trial in a lower court. The incident had brought in a new set of guidelines for cabs.

UNSAFE ALWAYS: MAJOR RAPE CASES IN THE CAPITAL IN THE LAST DECADE

2003 BUDDHA JAYANTI PARK GANG RAPE Oct 6, 2003 | A 17-year-old DU student raped by four guards at a park near Rashtrapati Bhavan Oct 7 | Main accused Harpreet Singh, three more held STATUS | All four convicted. Harpreet and Satender Singh get life term, Kuldeep Singh and Munesh Kumar 10 years in jail.

SHANTI MUKUND HOSPITAL RAPE Sep 7, 2003 | A nurse on duty at an east Delhi hospital raped in the middle of the night by a ward boy. He also gouges out her right eye and wounds the left one STATUS | Man gets life term
SIRI FORT RAPE Oct 14, 2003 | A 35-year-old filmmaker abducted from outside Siri Fort Auditorium and raped in a moving car
STATUS | Closure report filed, with police failing to trace any suspect
2005 DHAULA KUAN GANG RAPE May 8, 2005 | A 20-year-old DU student from Mizoram abducted by four people in a car early in the morning. Dumped at a gurdwara in south Delhi after being raped May 13 | Ajit Singh Katiyar, a driver with a call centre inNoida, arrested
STATUS | Gets 14 years in jail
2010 DHAULA KUAN GANG RAPE Nov 26, 2010 | A BPO employee walking home in Moti village near Dhaula Kuan in the morning along with a colleague abducted by four people and raped Dec 2 | Shamshad and Usman held
STATUS | Case pending in trial court

Delhi consistentky tops rape tally among Metros, States

Supriya Sharma TNN

New Delhi: If you have lived in different cities, you don’t need statistics to tell you which is the most unsafe city for women in India. A look at the National Crime Records Bureau data confirms the worst fears about Delhi: 572 women were raped in the city last year as compared to 239 in Mumbai. To put it another way, despite having nearly two million more people than Delhi, Mumbai reported less than half the number of rape cases. Other metropolitan cities reported even fewer instances: 47 in Kolkata, 76 in Chennai, and 96 in Bangalore.

Higher instances of crime against women in Delhi are often attributed to the influence of its neighbours. And yet, even among its neighbours, Delhi emerges as the worst. While Delhi had seven rape victims among one lakh females in 2011, Haryana had six, Rajasthan five, and Uttar Pradesh two.

Among cities, taking into account the difference in population to arrive at the incidence of rape, the results remain as startling: for every one lakh women and girls, as compared to seven rape victims in Delhi, there were three in Mumbai and two in Bangalore and Chennai. Kolkata was the safest among the metropolitan cities with two rape victims for every three lakh women in 2011.

These trends have remained unchanged over the last five years. Delhi has consistently held the top spot in the rape tally.

Unsafe at any hour in big, bad city

Women Tell TOI Their Moments Of Horror When Predators Almost Got Them

Prerna Sodhi TNN

SCARY REALITY: Women say they are regular victims of gender bias and sexual harassment

New Delhi: Two years ago, a 25-year-old got off the Metro at Central Secretariat to hire an auto to Netaji Nagar. What happened after she left the Metro station made her decide she will never step out of her home alone again after 9pm.
“It was 8.30pm. I got off the train at Central Secretariat by mistake. I wanted to catch an auto to Netaji Nagar. While I was waiting for the auto, five men started harassing me. I tried walking away quickly but they ripped my sleeve. I boarded the nearest auto and paid him extra to drive me home,” said the woman who works for an online portal. What saved her from worse was an oncoming ambulance which the harassers mistook for a police van and left hurriedly.
Her predicament is not unique. TOI spoke to a few women in the capital who said they felt unsafe whenever they stepped out and whatever mode of transport they took.
Most faced gender and sexual harassment on a regular basis, be it in the form of stalking, eve-teasing or even chasing by a group of predatory men on wheels. Many of these instances took place in broad daylight and being in a crowded place never ensured security. For example, a 24-year-old freelance writer recalled an attempt to pick her up about 1.30pm on a busy road. “I was crossing the road at Moolchand flyover. A car braked in front of me. It had two men in it. Instead of walking ahead of the vehicle, I passed by its side and crossed the road from behind it. A few car drivers stopped. They were curious to find out what the hold-up was about. But no one protested,” she said.
Her observation of silence in the face of atrocity is corroborated by a 23-year-old management student.
“No one wants to help or get involved. When we tried asking staff at a toll booth, we got complacent responses. Ya h a n c h ale ja o , w a h a n c h ale ja o (Check out this place, try this other place). Instead of looking for help I’d rather use my own wits. Help does not arrive on time and the people around end up as onlookers,” she said.
She recounted how she and her three friends were chased by a Scorpio full of men on Delhi-Gurgaon road on their way to a wedding. When no one helped them, they “decided to take a u-turn and go home”.
A study conducted by Jagori and United Nations Women in the year 2010 reveals 54% women and 69% men who witness an incident of women’s harassment prefer to stay uninvolved. It also states that 70% of women are harassed by the roadside, 50% inside public transport and 42% while waiting for transport.
Another management professional, a 27-year-old, said she uses office transport in the evening in a bid to “avoid autos”. “Although I have never faced misbehaviour aboard public transport, I’ve heard of my friends falling victims to untoward happenings,” she said.
For a 21-year-old fashion student, it is not once that her bus-stop wait turned ugly. “What is frustrating is that verbal protests are often interpreted as more encouragement,” she said.
(Names have been withheld on request)

Dark stretches a haven for criminals

Police identify 1,300-odd roads in national Capital

NEW DELHI: Poorly-lit stretches in the Capital or those with defunct streetlights serve as a haven to anti-social elements who easily escape after committing such crimes. And Sunday’s gangrape of a 23-year-old girl has once again highlighted this very horrific fact.

The Delhi police had identified 1,300-odd stretches that were either poorly lit or had nonfunctional streetlights in May this year. In 2011, there were only 650 such roads. The Delhi police said crimes against women mostly take place in such areas.

The police are planning to send a list of such stretches to civic agencies once again, urging them to repair the streetlights. "We have decided to send a reminder to all agencies as they have failed to rectify the problems that we had highlighted earlier," said a police official.

According to the survey, some of such stretches are — M-block GK I, Aurobindo Marg, Chirag Delhi stretch, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Marg in Hauz Khas, etc.

The survey has identified stretches that come under the jurisdiction of PWD, the three municipal corporations, NDMC.

“We will issue a direction to all our all the districts in the city to carry out a survey in their respective areas. Many areas under the jurisdiction of a particular police station have dark stretches and a few in bordering areas don't even have a streetlight," said an officer.

Police said poorly-lit stretches were the reason for rising criminal activities.

Source: Hindustan Times, Delhi Edition, 19.12.2012

Toilets for women must be safe, close by

New Delhi: While activists across the country have launched an initiative to curb open defecation and urination which, according to World Health Organisation, is the riskiest sanitation practice, women in the national capital still lack access to public toilets. 
    “Giving people access to toilets is not rocket science and we can find a solution. But the authorities lack will,” Anita Bharghav of Let’s Do It Delhi said. Her agency had been working on sanitation in Punjabi Bagh slums with Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board for over two years. 
    A big problem with public toilets, Bhargav said, is the contract between land owning agencies and those in charge of maintaining them. “Land-owning authorities hand over maintenance of public toilets to NGOs. Some give NGOs the right to charge Re 1 or Rs 2 for use of the toilets. But it’s not economically viable to have too many subcontracts,” she said. Her agency is working to increase capacity, build new toilets and create better contracts with a replicable model. “Other people can borrow our plans and even improve them if they like,” she said. 
    Another problem is lack of sufficient public toilets for both men and women. A 2012 study on drinking water and sanitation by the WHO and UNICEF reveals that 626 million people in India do not have a closed toilet. It’s the world’s highest number, far ahead of Indonesia, which ranks second at just 63 million. 
    But apart from building more public toilets, there is an urgent need to change the mindset of its intended users. “In our culture, nobody thinks of stopping men from doing anything while women have boundaries. For women, talking openly about basic bodily needs like urinating or defecating is taboo,” Rahul Gaekwad of Right To Pee, a Mumbai-based campaign with 35 participating NGOs, said. 
    He says safety, too, is an area of concern for women when they visit public toilets as many are in remote areas, have less light or male attendants. “We want toilets every two or three kilometres, women attendants, facilities like sanitary napkins and trash cans,” he said. Though the campaign focusses onwomen, Gaekwad said it will help curb public urination because “who will use the road if there is a facility nearby?” 
    In Bangalore, several initiatives have been taken up to change public behaviour. A street art campaign, The Pee Project, puts up lithographic posters of urinals on city walls to make men think twice before urinating on them. They are not alone. The Ugly Indians, an anonymous group of citizens of Bangalore, works on the motto – k a a m c h a l u , m o o h b a n d h. They have beautified a footpath, which previously served as a garbage dump and local urinal, by clearing obstacles to pedestrians, cleaning, painting walls, adding plants and flowers and maintaining it with the rationale that men will not dirty a clean footpath that people actually use. 
    A new scheme introduced earlier this month in 34 villages in Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district aims to change public behaviour through public humiliation. Volunteers with drums and whistles literally blow the whistle on persons they see urinating or defecating in public. Those caught again in the act are liable to be fined. 
    toireporter@timesgroup.com 

Source: TOI (pg 3, 25 Nov 2012)