SHE Teams is a division of
Telangana Police for enhanced safety and security of women. They also work to prevent
child marriages in
Telangana State
Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 35, ...
. The teams work in small groups to arrest eve teasers, stalkers and harassers. They operate mainly in busy public areas in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
.
They respond to complaints delivered by WhatsApp and through social media.
History
SHE Teams stands for Safety, Health and Environment. The division was started on 24 October 2014, is a brainchild of
Chief Minister of Telangana
The chief minister of Telangana is the chief executive of the Indian state of Telangana. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief ministe ...
,
K. Chandrashekar Rao who was impressed by a similar initiative in
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
. Additional Commissioner, Hyderabad, Swathi Lakra heading the division ever since its inception.
The Teams
A team comprises an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), who acts as a lead with four to five male and female constables in each Zone, they all work under Assistant DCP rank woman police officer. They work
undercover
To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an ind ...
.
The cases related to harassment of women under
Rachakonda commissionerate had come down by 85 percent.
The 24×7 monitoring by the teams, conducting decoy operations, SHE Shuttles, Margadarshak and counselling sessions are proving to be effective in curbing the crime rate.
Case lodging
As a deterrent, the first time offenders are mostly booked under petty cases like Sec 290 IPC and Sec 70 (c) of the Hyderabad city police act.
More serious and repeat offenders are likely to be booked under 509 IPC (word act or gesture intended to insult the modesty of a woman), section 354IPC (assault or criminal force on a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty), could potentially lead to an offence under section 376 (rape).
Expansion
In Hyderabad, there are 100 teams in operation by March 2018. The division is present in Adilabad, Nizamabad. It is being expanded to other districts in Telangana State.
References
{{reflist
External links
Official site
Telangana Police
Government of Telangana
KCR Government initiatives
Specialist law enforcement agencies of India
2014 establishments in Telangana
Government agencies established in 2014