Kathua (J-K), Oct.11 (ANI): Police inaugurated a special cell in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua District, to assist women emotionally and legally in wake of surging crimes such as rape, domestic violence and harassment over dowry.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Superintendent of Police in Kathua, Atul Kumar Goel, said that staff handling such cases would be specially trained to deal with victims in a compassionate manner.
"Any woman in the area who is a victim of any sort of crime will be benefited by this cell. They can come here and put their woes in front of our staff. Special instructions would be given to our staff to be sensitive towards women related crimes and give them assistance. We will also treat such women with compassion," said Goel.
One bride is murdered every hour over dowry demands, says the National Crime Records Bureau, while over 20,000 rapes were recorded last year.
He added that increasing cases of rape, dowry and domestic violence which sometimes go unreported would also be taken care of by the cell.
"The most common cases of crime are those of dowry, domestic violence in the district. Some women are subjugated, assuming that they are the weaker sex. Cases of eve teasing and rape are also reported to us and our effort is to assist them in every possible manner," said Goel.
Women in India face a multitude of threats, from illegal abortions of female foetuses due to a preference for sons, to the murders of brides by in-laws for want of more dowry, child marriage and human trafficking.
One women is raped every 20 minutes in India, according to the National Crime Records Bureau, which reported 24,206 rapes in 2011 - an almost 10 percent rise over the previous year.
But gender rights activists say even those figures are a gross under-exaggeration, with most victims unwilling to report the crime out of fear it will bring dishonour on their families. (ANI)