Sakhi, a women’s resource group, is promoting the use of ‘Safetipin,’ a mobile application which can ‘ensure the safety of women.’
The application conducts a location-based safety audit of the city based on information uploaded and shared by users on ‘hazardous locations.’
It was designed by social entrepreneur Ashish Basu and activist Kalpana Vishwanath of Jagori Women’s Resource Group, New Delhi. It was an initiative to make New Delhi safer after the gang rape incident of December 16, 2012. Sakhi had conducted a ‘Safe city free of violence against women’ project, spanning four cities in the State. It focussed on the concerns faced by women in public spaces and the lack of infrastructure guaranteeing their safety.
The ‘Safetipin’ programme is a follow-up to that venture. The basis of the programme is the understanding that safety can be enhanced by community participation.
The application requires access to the internet and GPS and is available on Apple and Android platforms. It allows users to audit an area based on parameters such as adequate public transportation and street lighting. Relevant pictures on issues in a particular locality, be it broken street lights or open sewers, can be uploaded along with suggestions. Such inputs by the people can then be forwarded to the nearest police station or civic authorities.
In the completed model being used in New Delhi, there is a detailed city map that demarcates areas as safe, moderately safe, and unsafe.
Sakhi will carry out a safety audit in the capital and Kochi with the support of Jagori. Active Learning Solutions, Gurgaon, will provide technical and financial support. The groundwork is expected to take four months and students from the Loyola School of Social Sciences will carryout the audit in educational institutions, public parks, residential areas, and commercial hubs.