Never Another NIRBHAYA, Make Buses Safe!

Here's how your CSR funding can help make Delhi buses safe for women.

This cause is featured on Fund My Project as part of CSRlive.in‘s collaboration with Ketto.org

Project by: Manas Foundation

Funding Required: INR 2 Lacs

The 2012 Nirbhaya case in Delhi shook many to the core. We finally realised that the safety of women in our city, in our country, is in a state of terrifying decay. We need public spaces to be as safe for women as they are for men. Today, no woman leaves the house alone or enters public transportation of any kind without trepidation of possible sexual glances, eve teasing, harassment and even assault. For women, it’s a constant state of mind while outside the safety of our homes. We, at Manas Foundation, are working towards ensuring that ‘safe spaces for women’ is no longer synonymous with houses. We want women to be able to be out in the city without constant fear.

About Manas Foundation

Manas Foundation has been working in the field of mental health and gender equity and justice for the last 15 years. Since 2014, we have used our expertise in psychology to bring about a behavioural and attitudinal change in the mind sets of commercial drivers with regards to gender. Over the last four years, we have trained approximately 3 lakh commercial drivers (auto, bus, and taxi and gramin sewa). Last year, the Delhi state government took a proactive step towards ensuring safe and sexual harassment free travel for women commuters. The Delhi Transportation Corporation (DTC) buses, in collaboration with the Delhi Police placed 4000 homeguards as marshals in DTC buses. The envisaged role of a bus marshal is-

In order to help this initiative be effective in ensuring the safety of women travelling in DTC buses, in 2015, Manas Foundation was empanelled to expand our gender sensitization training to these bus marshals. In the first phase of the project, we have trained approximately 2000 marshals and these marshals are successfully manning and keeping their DTC busses safe. However, over half of the marshals still remain untrained. In the second phase of the project, we aim to train the remaining DTC marshals, as we cannot expect this initiative to be effective in its multi-pronged objective without each and every one of them receiving the proper gender education. With only half of the marshals trained in gender, many a buses still remain untouched by the new protocols and hence, unsafe. In order to have blanket coverage of each and every DTC bus, we need to ensure that all bus marshals have received proper gender sensitization trainings.

Fund Allocation

All funds raised for the DTC Marshal Training Program will be used in two major areas. Firstly, the resource personnel, that is, the individuals who will be conducting these workshops. These resource personnel will be highly trained and experienced in the field of gender sensitization. Secondly, for the IEC material, which has dual purposes. The IEC material, such as certificates and booklets reinforces the Marshals’ commitment to the goal of women safety. The other IEC material, such as stickers will be put inside buses to generate awareness about the training and to connect with the passengers and general public, to make them feel safer while they travel in these buses.

Appeal

This goal is something which is personal to all those who live in this city, to all those who have read about the safety conditions of women in Delhi, to all those who have been scared to go out, or been scared for someone they know or care about. Contribute to our campaign to help us prevent another Nirbhaya case, to prevent other women from being assaulted and to help women not live in constant fear.

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