Projects – Enhancing Delhi’s Safety for NE Women

People from North East Indian states begun migrating to Delhi and NCR in lase one decade. Social unrest, lack of employment opportunities and limited choice of education facilities are push factors for migration to Delhi. 

Globalisations, employment opportunities, vast choice of educational facilities and easy access by private airlines have become pull factors to attract North Easterners to Delhi and NCR. 

Girls from the region became vulnerable for sexual violence at work places, schools, colleges and university campuses. They are sexually abused by employers, male colleagues, neighbours and house owners. In most of the cases, they are not able to get help from police until pressure mounted from media and senior police officials. 

Program attempts to bring changes: 

> Law Enforcement Agents: There have been lapses from Delhi and NCR Police in dealing sexual violence faced by women from North East India. Program attempt to work together with law enforcement agencies to be more proactive preventive approach.

> Current law against sexual violence in India is very weak to punish the offenders. In most of the cases, offenders get unpunished without any justice given to offenders and victims.

> If no attempt to end sexual violence against North East women, they will be targeted for human trafficking very soon. There has been already numbers of cases reported. 

> Mind Set Must Changed: North East Indian girls and women have not been accepted as part of Indian society by majority communities in Delhi. They have been treated as strangers, foreigners and loose character people. Their social, educational and economic status does not matter as they have been socially profile. Social Profiling has been root cause of sexual violence meted out to them and this mind set must be changed. 

> Mind set of people could be changed, first by bringing the law into force. Perpetrators and public need to get the message that crime is crimes, irrespective who commits against who. Exemplarity punishment will bring public awareness and it could change the mindset of perpetrators who target North East girls easily. 

> Cultural Integration: Importance of cultural integration among North Easterners in Delhi and NCR must be recognised by the people from North East India and local people. In many cases, North East girls take their freedom and secured life in home states for granted in strange cities like Delhi and NCR. Program attempts to bring integration of cultural differences among North East people and local communities.