Aone-day seminar on Safety of Women was held by the UGC Saksham wing of SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST), Vadapalani, in collaboration with Sanju Women’s Welfare Association, on Saturday. Padma Venkataraman, president, WIA Chennai, J Chandrakumar, director admin, SRMIST, Bhavatarini, senior advocate, Madras High Court and Bhargavi Devendra, secretary, WIA, were the chief guests of the event.
“We must study the word safety in depth and understand where its limits end, and then the loopholes need to be plugged. Right from childhood, a girl’s mind is programmed to tolerate a few things in the name of custom. That is why we do not know where teasing ends and violation begins,” said Bhavatarini.
She also reminded the audience about the fundamental duties. “Everyone must be aware of that. Social responsibility, where you raise and speak for yourself or when somebody else’s safety is being breached or if someone is vulnerable, must be inculcated,” she said.
The guests touched upon different aspects of women’s safety and educated the audience on the need to develop a sense of equality and awareness in both girls and boys.
“Such seminars bring out interesting deliberations. We have an equal ratio of male and female faculty members in our college. We have laws in abundance and enforcement is what we require now,” said Chandrakumar.
The inaugural session was followed by a panel discussion on the topics — ‘Legal and Police Protection Aspects of Women Safety’ and ‘Women Safety from Professional Perspective’. It presented the need to continue the efforts to engage more men in women safety issues.