Police initiate action on safety survey report

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The city police have filed criminal cases against four anti-social elements who were caught following a special drive held on the basis of a recent women safety survey conducted at Technopark. As many as 10 individuals were nabbed in the drive conducted on Tuesday based on the locations identified in the survey in which women employees of Technopark participated.  

Police presence will be ensured in the locations identified by the women and random checks will continue, said K Sanjaykumar Gurudin, Additional Commissioner of Police. "This initiative was taken as part of our duty to make the city safe for women to live, work and travel. Installation of cameras, lighting up areas and increasing police presence is what we plan to do," said Sanjaykumar. Undercover police will be present.

The safety survey was initiated in May by Sanjaykumar, when he was the City Police Commissioner.

Identified black spots along with other suggestions raised by the women were consolidated and presented in the survey report. The report was submitted to Mayor V K Prasanth and Sanjaykumar by employees the other day. Eleven locations were identified by women near Technopark as unsafe for commuting. As many as 305 employees from 63 IT companies participated in the survey. The survey conducted from May 28 to June 5 was targeted at identifying unsafe locations. The questionnaire was circulated amongst the community by the Technopark-based socio-cultural forum Prathidhwani.

“Frequent police checking will continue as placing the cameras will take time,” he said. The antecedents of the arrested 10 were checked and six of them were let off after warning while criminal cases have been taken against four. “It was a suo-moto action,” said Sanjaykumar.

The quick action initiated by the police has infused confidence among the techie community. "Although there were incidents that occurred earlier, women would shy away from registering any complaint. But the survey gave them a platform and the action initiated has given confidence to the employees," says Rajeev Krishnan, secretary, Prathidhwani.

The women employees have expressed satisfaction in the follow-up actions undertaken by the police. "The cleaning staff have also been subjected to attacks by these anti-social elements. There are specific locations where adequate street lights aren't provided and traversing through these areas in itself a task. It is good that the move was launched," says Aishwarya Syam who works at QBurst in Technopark.

Black spots
Rear gate - Thrippadapuram Temple Road
Nila gate to KSEB substation
Rack gate to Karyavattom Campus
Pathway from service road opposite Technopark Main gate to Pallinada
Railway station road via Saji Hospital
Kazhakuttam - Technopark  Service Road
UST Global campus to TSC hospital service road
Attinkuzhy- Railway station road
Phase 3 - Kallingal - Thrippadapuram road
Service roads opposite to UST Global and Infosys
Service roads from Technopark to Kulathoor
Steps from Nila Circle to Bhavani/Thejaswini

Other
suggestions
More police patrolling in shady areas from 6 pm to 10 pm
More pink police presence on service roads, hostel
premises from 6 pm to 10 pm
CCTV camera surveillance on service roads and in shady areas identified
The necessity of more street lights with high watt bulbs in service roads and in shady areas identified
A women police officer of Sub-Inspector rank at Kazhakkoottam Cyber City Police Station
Display autorickshaw rates at the main auto stands