‘Bihar needs posting of dedicated women officers to deal with their issues’

NEW DELHI: Despite a manifold rise in the number of women in the workforce and institutions, the instances of crime against women have also increased in Bihar that led to the shifting of the focus of the government towards their safety and security. The startling revelation brought into the notice by senior IPS officials of Bihar during a five-day training programme.

While stressing the need for dedicated women officers to deal with their issues, Shoba Ohatker, who is director-general, Home Guard and Fire Services, said, “Bihar needs posting of dedicated officers as well as toll-free woman helpline numbers to exclusively deal with crime against women. Helpline numbers are important for increasing accessibility. At the level of woman police stations, there should be a crime against women cell and child desk.”

Ohatker, who was famous in Bihar as “hunterwali” IPS, further said that with nearly 80 per cent of the women living in villages, the police must not only reach out to them, but also learn to deal with women with respect to getting an accurate picture of atrocities against them.

“Besides, women need to be made aware of their rights. There cannot be a bigger crime than human trafficking. The state still lacks dedicated human trafficking units. Bihar is a transit point for human trafficking to Nepal and Bangladesh. There is also a need to make sections 354-A, 506 and 509 non-bailable through amendments,” the senior IPS officer.

Present on the occasion, Alok Raj, who is DG (training), said that the government was committed to improving various aspects related to women safety and addresses them to make a safe and happy society.

“There is a plan for specialised training to officials from the rank of ASI to inspectors, as their role becomes important in the field. There is a need to lay emphasis on proper dealing with the victims so that they could feel confident, evidence collection and investigation,” he added.