Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) Chief Swati Maliwal inspected bus stops in the national capital and interacted with female passengers for the second consecutive day for women’s safety.
“We’re receiving complaints from many parts of Delhi that there are many bus stops and roads in Delhi where there is no light and there are many streets where there are no lights,” Maliwal said, speaking to ANI on Saturday.
After inspecting the Lalita Park and Ramesh Park bus stops on Friday, the DCW Chief inspected the Baprola and Bakkarwala bus stops on Saturday. All the bus stops were found to be in darkness.
“Yesterday, we inspected Lalita Park and Ramesh Park bus stops, which are central areas in Delhi. Street lights are in place but they are not functional. Today we inspected the Baprola and Bakkarwala bus stops. It is very dark in both places,” Maliwal said.
The DCW chief said that women have been complaining to her that street lights are not functional at such places for the last year.
“If this is the condition of the bus stops in Delhi, how can women be safe? We travelled on the bus and interacted with female passengers. They’re saying that this has been the condition of these places for the last year. For a stretch of 1.5 kilometres, there are no lights,” Maliwal said.
The DCW chief said that she is issuing notice to the Delhi government on the issue and asking them to fix the lighting at the bus stops as well as the streetlights immediately.
“First, I am issuing a notice to the Delhi government to ensure proper lighting at these bus stops immediately. All streetlights that are not functional should be fixed,” she said.
Maliwal called for the suspension of officers-in-charge of the streetlights and the creation of such a strict system in which if lights are not functional for 48 hours, the officers will not only be suspended but will also be asked to pay a penalty.
“I don’t understand if these officers are not working properly why are they not taking any action against them? Who are accountable? If there are streetlights in place but they are not functional someone should be held accountable,” the DCW chief said.
“I appeal to create a system where if lights are not functional at a place for 48 hours, the officer-in-charge should be suspended and made to pay a penalty,” she added.
Earlier, in the intervening night of December 9 and 10, a girl on her way to Jaipur from Kanpur was allegedly gang-raped by two drivers, police said.
This incident bears a close resemblance to the 2012 Delhi gang rape incident that took place in the same month and sent shockwaves across the country. A young woman was brutally assaulted and raped on a moving bus in Delhi, which led to her death a few months later.