BENGALURU: Women police officers and activists alike welcomed the state government’s move to set up six special police units headed by an SP-rank officer to improve investigations into crimes against women.
The announcement was made by the chief minister on Friday. The announcement comes at a time when the violence against women seems to be on the rise across the state.
“Whether people feel this or not, we need more women in the Police Department. They bring in a sensitivity to investigating cases and this is especially required in cases of crimes against women,” said a senior policewoman. “When 50 per cent of the population are women, there is an obvious lack of balance when only a handful of the investigating officers are women,” she said.
Vimala K S, state vice -resident of the Janavadi Mahila Sangatane, welcomed the special units. “Women police stations are not enough considering that these are often relegated to counselling centres. The special units are a positive step, but care should be taken to ensure that the officers in the unit- both men and women- are gender sensitised,” she said.