Received less calls regarding crimes against women in COVID lockdown period: DCW

The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) received 34,454 complaints during the coronavirus pandemic on its 181 helpline and "observed a decrease" in the number of calls related to crimes against women.

The panel said a majority of the complaints were related to queries regarding the lockdown, which included enquiries regarding food and interstate movement, the panel said. The commission received more than 20,000 such calls and provided assistance to the complainants, it said.

Panel chief Swati Maliwal said, "It was seen that the reporting of cases had decreased manifold in the initial days of the lockdown. The commission and the Delhi government have taken several steps to create awareness and has encouraged women and girls freely report their issues.” The panel said there has been a decrease in the number of complaints regarding crimes and discrimination against women reported to the commission during the period of the pandemic when compared with the similar period in 2019.

For instance, domestic violence complaints for the period March to June in 2019 were 8,188, while the number of complaints received by the commission for the same months during 2020 stands at 6,909, it said. The number of domestic violence cases reported in the initial days of the lockdown were significantly low. It has been noted that as we progress towards normalcy post-lockdown, the reporting of domestic violence and other cases has also started increasing, it added.