Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government has proposed nine major initiatives at an estimated cost of ₹10 crore to strengthen the safety of women and girls in Sambalpur under the Nirbhaya initiative.
The proposals were reviewed at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Anu Garg at Lok Seva Bhawan here on Tuesday. Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, Hemant Sharma and Director General of Police Vinaytosh Mishra attended the meeting, while Sambalpur Collector Siddeshwar Baliram Bondre joined virtually and presented the proposed plans.
The initiatives focus on rapid police assistance, emergency response, technology-based surveillance, safe transport, women-friendly public facilities and awareness programmes.
Under ‘Shakti Sarathi’, 15 two-wheelers will be deployed for patrolling and rapid assistance by women police personnel. The ‘Pratikriya’ initiative envisages 15 emergency response vehicles and the use of drones for rescue and assistance, while ‘Drishti’ proposes the installation of 800 CCTV cameras at 210 locations to strengthen surveillance.
Five police assistance centres will be established under ‘S-Stop’, while ‘Sahayatra’ envisages the operation of 40 pink e-rickshaws to provide safe and affordable transportation for women.
Under ‘Nirbhaya Sadan’, four assistance centres are proposed at the district court premises, railway station, Burla medical area and district headquarters hospital. The ‘Sathi’ initiative will provide six toilets and nursing facilities, while ‘Yatra’ proposes real-time tracking of buses operated by 50 educational institutions.
The ‘Sachetana’ initiative will focus on awareness campaigns, self-defence training, health education and community-based activities to promote women’s safety.
Garg stressed the need to involve adolescent boys in the campaign to foster respectful behaviour towards women, gender sensitivity and social responsibility.
Senior officials, including Health and Family Welfare Commissioner-cum-Secretary Aswathy S., School and Mass Education Commissioner-cum-Secretary N. Tirumala Naik, and Women and Child Development Commissioner-cum-Secretary Mrinalini Darswal, also participated in the meeting to ensure coordination among the police, health, education, women and child development departments and the local administration.
