Study of Women Safety in Suryanagar, Ghaziabad

In 2018, India was named as the most dangerous country for women in the world, ranking first in sexual violence, human trafficking, and cultural, tribal and religious practices that endanger women. Violence against women in India manifests through behaviours, such as intimate partner violence and sexual assault, as well as through regional practices such as female child mortality due to son preference, child marriage, and honour killing. According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report, women in Uttar Pradesh faced the maximum number of crimes in the country in 2021 where Ghaziabad stood at 13th spot out of 48 districts in U.P. with a total of 1082 registered crimes against women. Also, it should be noted that while the issue of safety of women in public places has been studied in India, these studies have looked at either the metros or rural areas. There is very little literature apart from newspaper reports that discuss safety in public places in Tier II cities like Ghaziabad. Keeping this in mind the present study was undertaken in the Suryanagar ward of Ghaziabad district in Uttar Pradesh to assess the level of safety, gather data about the experiences and perceptions about women safety in public places, and use the key findings of the study to raise awareness and advocate greater safety for women.