NEW DELHI, 10 September 2007 — To ensure safer rail travel for women who constitute a significant number of train passengers, the government has decided to deploy a crack commando force of women for countering anti-social elements posing threat.
With crimes such as harassment of women and snatching of jewelry in trains and stations known to occur frequently, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) is raising an armed women’s battalion to deal with the problem.
Elaborating on this, RPF Director General M.K. Sinha said: “It should have been done much earlier as women constitute a considerable percentage among rail passengers. Nevertheless, it is better late than never as there is a dire need for it.”
At present, there are only about 1,500 women in RPF, which has about 70,000 personnel. However, with the recruitment having begun, Sinha said: “The number of women in the RPF will increase soon as we complete the process of recruitment. While the women commando unit will have about 100 members in the first phase, their number will increase subsequently.”
“They will be imparted sophisticated training required for a commando force,” he said. ”We are also considering a separate uniform for our women commandos. This will give them a distinct identity.”
Women will also be inducted in the Railway Protection Special Force (RPSF), the armed wing of RPF, currently deployed in Jammu and Kashmir. The RPSF is involved in protecting railway property, including coaches, locomotives and tracks in the Kashmir Valley.
Besides, in view of the increasing number of crimes against women being reported regularly, a team of 11 women has been formed to check male passengers traveling in ladies’ compartments in the Delhi region, according to RPF Divisional Security Commissioner Tariq Zulfiqar. Women passengers traveling in local and suburban trains are regularly subject to harassment.
