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Across the country, inequality is fundamentally tied to physical safety and freedom from violence. Women and gender minorities face persistent challenges in accessing public spaces, with their experiences marred by harassment, assault, and fear.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), almost 32 thousand rapes were recorded in India in 2021, an average of 86 cases a day.
And in 2022, a World Bank study revealed that while 88 per cent of women in Delhi were sexually harassed that year, just 1 per cent informed the police.
This makes it likely that these figures don’t represent the true scale of the problem, given how many of these offences go unreported.
As for its impact, this pervasive culture of violence is restricting the freedom of movement of gender minorities and perpetuating a pattern of exclusion countrywide.
In India, public spaces are significantly dangerous, where the simple act of walking is all-too often infused with anxiety, fear, and a need to conform.
As noted in Why Loiter? by Shilpa Phadke, when women are attacked, they’ll inevitably be questioned about what they were wearing, highlighting the fact that outdated norms prevail and that they still don’t belong in these arenas.
Even as women’s enrollment in higher education rises, their work participation has been decreasing. Even as more women enter medical colleges, not as many eventually practice, writes Shilpa Phadke.https://t.co/dSJSQNan98 #WomenSafety pic.twitter.com/WfUbYCvH9W
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These barriers to accessibility are frequently impeded by discrimination, with only 44 per cent of Indian women permitted to visit markets unaccompanied, as the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) has found.
Employment opportunities are also affected, with women’s mobility in urban areas restricted due to safety concerns (in addition to these disparities and social norms) and their workforce participation much lower than men’s as a result.
