A new 24 hour hotline for women began operation on Monday in Delhi. The hotline, one of Delhi Chief Minister Shelia Dikshit’s responses to the horrific gang rape of a 23 year old student on a bus, allows women experiencing violence or harassment to call for help.
Women in the capital can now call 181 where they will speak to a qualified counsellor and receive contact information for relevant government departments or organisations. The counsellor can also call the police if necessary. Within its first 12 hours of operation, the hotline received approximately 2,000 calls.
The hotline is one of the first government responses to protesters’ continued cry for reform of judicial processes and attitudes towards women. According to a report in the New York Times, some people view the hotline as ‘too little, too late’, stating that it doesn’t address the need for speeding up legal proceedings involving cases of sexual violence and rape.
