Out on work, city women can never breathe easy

Neha Pushkarna, TNN, Nov 26, 2010, 02.35am IST

NEW DELHI: Women in the city just can't breathe easy it seems. The moment they let their guards down, they end up as victims. Young, professional women getting abducted from their doorsteps is more a routine now than shock. Dhaula Kuan rape case of 2005, Sowmya Vishwanathan murder case, Jigeesha murder case, and now the rape of a BPO employee in Dhaula Kuan on Wednesday have scared and alerted women enough.

No wonder relying on security guards, keeping in constant touch with family and office, keeping emergency numbers on speed dial has become a norm for women who work till late. Many women say that after a spate of such incidents, their employers made sure they were never left alone in the cab and were always dropped right outside their residence though Wednesday's case was an aberration. But the constant fear of being a prey becomes too much to handle at times, they admit.

"Our office has become more sensitive about safety of all women employees. I usually reach home around 1am in the office cab. There is either a security guard with me or a male employee who gets dropped last,'' said Vandana Khanna, a KPO employee in Gurgaon. She further said, "The Dhaula Kuan rape case had just happened when I started working. It had scared the hell out of me. Even though our cabs are safe, the contact numbers of my family and the police are always on my speed dial.''

How the culprits go scot-free every time amazes many. Women say they wonder if it's the policing that lacks teeth or the morals that fall short. Anjali Kapoor, a chartered accountant who often leaves office late during audits, says it's good to be paranoid. "I make sure my cab drops me right outside my building and the security guard waits there till I am inside the house. The office staff then calls and checks if I have reached. I call them if they don't. I wish commuting was not so much of a struggle,'' she said. "I think giving a harsher punishment to those guilty of rapes and murders can act as a deterrent,'' she added.

Parents and families too stay on their toes. When Geetika Tandona shifted to the city from Meerut to work with a BPO six months ago, her parents had handed her a long list of dos and don'ts to follow while commuting. "They instructed me to never doze off in the cab. They also asked me to always keep track of the route and insist on taking only the familiar road. To keep talking to the driver is also important. If the cab can't go till outside the house, the security guards escorts me till the door,'' Geetika said.

Shilpi Chaudhry, who drives back home in Gurgaon every night from Nehru Place around 11pm, says she checks the car tyres before moving and goes to only that petrol pump which is properly lit and already has enough customers. "Being vigilant all the time is the best way to keep oneself safe. But such incidents can happen anywhere and anytime. The uncertainty increases the problem,'' she said.