Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has assured student representatives that the government will coordinate with police, civic agencies and college administrations to improve women’s safety, public transport access and grievance redressal around colleges across the city.
Gupta held a meeting with representatives of several Delhi colleges at her residence on Monday. The students raised concerns about inadequate street lighting, dark spots, CCTV surveillance, police patrolling, public transport availability and the handling of complaints in and around college campuses.
Representatives from Lady Shri Ram College, Gargi College, Daulat Ram College, Jesus and Mary College, Maitreyi College, Aditi Mahavidyalaya, Bharti College and Janki Devi Memorial College took part in the interaction. They sought safety audits of vulnerable locations, deployment of women police personnel, more regular police patrols and wider publicity for women’s safety helpline numbers.
The students specifically highlighted areas with large student populations, including Siri Fort Road, the vicinity of Kamala Nehru College and Gargi College, Mukherjee Nagar and the area around Batra Cinema. Their suggestions included installing adequate street lights near campuses, identifying and auditing dark spots, and improving security at sensitive locations.
Public transport was another major concern. Students said that Delhi Transport Corporation buses were not sufficiently available for off-campus colleges and institutions in distant areas. They also reported that buses did not always stop at designated bus stops, raising concerns for students who depend on public transport for daily travel.
The students also sought more effective action on complaints submitted at pink booths and regular checking of complaint boxes on college campuses. One proposal was to establish a committee at each college consisting of the principal, student representatives and local police officials. The committees would be responsible for reviewing safety concerns and ensuring that issues raised by students receive follow-up.
Gupta said the suggestions would be placed before the relevant officials and that coordination and follow-up would be ensured to address the problems. She also said that street lighting requirements around colleges would be taken up in coordination with the concerned agencies and college administrations.
A WhatsApp group created to facilitate communication between students and officials is expected to remain active. Through the group, students can share problems directly with the authorities. If a complaint is not addressed at the relevant level, students may escalate it to senior police officers and departmental officials, according to the assurance given during the meeting.
The meeting places responsibility for campus-area safety across several institutions rather than on colleges alone. Lighting may involve civic agencies and campus administrations, while bus availability and designated stops involve transport authorities. Police presence, pink booths and complaint follow-up require coordination between the police and college-level representatives. The government’s next steps will depend on how these agencies respond to the concerns raised by students.
