Vasanthamma was clueless on what to do when she landed in the Kandukur bus stand in the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday.
Coming to know of the pilot drop home service launched by the Prakasam police, she dialed 100 and within minutes a police vehicle headed by a woman police officer came to her, much to her relief. Then she was taken to her native Kothasingarabotlapalem village free of cost.
Overwhelmed by the gesture, the woman was all praise for the Prakasam police and the ‘Abhay’ service which has been launched last week in the wake of the gangrape and murder of the Hyderabad veterinarian.
Service to expand
In all, eight four-wheelers and 70 two-wheelers have been pressed into service to reach out to women in need of help between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. The service, which has been rolled out in Ongole city, Chirala, Kandukur and Markapur towns to start with, will be extended to other places in phases, according to Superintendent of Police Siddharth Kaushal.
“We have identified unsafe locations in and around Kandukur and asking women not to hesitate in seeking police help at odd hours,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police B. Ravichandra after an interaction with a group of women near the Pamur bus stand centre.
