There's a definite drop in crime against women in Kannur: Pink Police Patrol
Kannur's Pink Police Patrol on the impact patrolling has had on the crime rate.
Kannur (known to many by its anglicised name Cannanore), the eponymous district headquarter town in Kerala with its vast stretches of beaches, is a magnet for travellers like me. There just last week, I happened to spot the Pink Police Patrol.
One day, while they were patrolling the beachfront near the Guest House area very close to the popular Kannur Light House and Museum, I met Kannur Pink Patrol's 53-year-old assistant sub-inspector Kumari who spoke to YourStory about the initiative.
The Pink Police Patrol
The initiative was started by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on February 1, 2017. In Kannur, it was launched on February 2. The aim was to ensure greater safety to women and children in Kerala.
As to the training for this role, all the women attended a two-day workshop in Trivandrum.
There are currently 22 policewomen in Kannur district, 11 in Kannur town, and 11 in Thalassery. There are two cars in each of the cities, each with a woman driver. From 8 am to 8 pm, the patrol is deployed in areas where the presence of women is high. There is a 24X7 toll-free number where their help can be sought. Each of the patrol cars has four policewomen.
Making Kannur safe for women
Speaking about the impact of the patrolling by the Pink Police, Kumari says,
"This programme has been highly successful. In fact, if we look at this particular area (the Guest House area where I found them patrolling) we used to see a lot of young girls (below 16) being brought here by adult men, which is illegal. So we have managed to discourage that. Because of the patrolling, the numbers have gone down drastically."
There are a lot of youngsters thronging the beach. It's not easy dealing with some of these people. "We try and reason with the youngsters, at times, counsel them so they can realise their mistakes, and at times we even warn them."
Her own experience as a woman with 28 years' experience in the police force comes in handy. She says,
"As a result of this patrolling, there is a huge reduction in the number of incidents at the beach fronts, parks, railway stations, and bus stops. Not just these generic incidents but other crimes such as chain snatching and eve-teasing and overall behaviour of bus drivers and conductors towards women too has seen an overall improvement."
More women need to report crimes
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in 2015 the crime rate in Kerala (1194.3) was higher even than in Delhi (1066.2).
Initiatives such as Pink Police Patrol can play an integral role in ensuring that rowdies and criminals don't operate without fear of law and punishment and that women feel there is help at hand when they find themselves in a vulnerable situation.
Kumari sends out one message to women everywhere: "Patrolling can prevent and reduce crime but not eliminate it. To eliminate crime we need to let the system step in and do its work and that is possible only when crimes are reported. So I request women not to shy away from seeking help and reaching out and filing complaints."