When Courage Walked Girls Home

When women are able to live in a safe and secure environment, they can participate effectively in the economy. 

~Helen Clark

But imagine being cut short right at the onset of her stepping out, let alone the idea of being a participant in the mainstream economy! That is what girls in Kharak Mangoli Colony of Panchkula, Haryana were facing. 

Tucked in the foothills of Shivalik, Panchkula hosts the perfect amalgamation of greenery and modernity. And so do the numbers speak of its modernity and inclusiveness! With a population of 5.5 lakhs, of which male are approximately 3 lakhs and females are 2.5 lakh respectively, it acts as a model for other districts to learn from. 

While this is just one side of the district, the other side is an amalgamation of urban slums with people from across India who have settled down in Panchkula, in hope of a bright future and a productive present! A side where the town saw itself struggling with literacy in communities. It was something that made the accessibility of developmental facilities impossible especially for vulnerable sections like young girls. 

One of these places was Kharak Mangoli colony from where came to light, an incident that troubled many. A group of girls was being eve-teased on their way back home from school daily. Before they learnt to grow, they had learnt fear! Tired and angry about the situation, they complained about it to their parents. Their parents decided to visit the local police station. Sadly, there was no heed paid to them. 

Therefore, the girls and their parents decided to organise an Alert Group Meeting. With the help of this Alert Group and support from Child Rights and You (CRY), 200 residents decided to make their way to the DCP police. They went with a request to look into the grave irregularities taking place in the colony. 

The police heard them and assured them that nothing would come in their way to education! It was heartening to see that the DCP office took swift action to ensure the safety of these girls. The police started patrolling the region and went on frequent visits to the project that lay abandoned, giving the eve-teasers an ideal place to be at. While it was a small step from the authority, but, for children, it became a gamechanger for their confidence! The girls started walking home fearlessly. They now felt that their advocacy had the power to uproot many such social evils. The intervention not just restored safety, but also boosted trust in authorities, and strengthened community vigilance. 

To keep ablaze the spirit of such change, CRY is also ensuring that community gender sensitivity sessions are taken forward through Adolescent and Children Groups to address the deep-rooted problem of eve-teasing. 

This is not just a story of one-time change but a sustainable change in the approach with which eve-teasing is dealt by a society!