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Any woman who has done her fair share of travelling in the City will testify that eve teasing is a ridiculously common phenomenon. In fact, several have taught themselves to turn a deaf ear to men who whistle or call out to them on the streets.
The problem, however, is that eve teasing doesn’t always stop at jeering from a distance. Women can also be subjected to mild forms of physical harassment, like being groped in buses or purposely bumped into on pavements. Metrolife speaks to a few women to find out about their personal experiences, and the steps that they take to combat this menace.
Khushi, a student of Bangalore University, feels that eve teasing is difficult to curb because of the frequency with which it occurs. “I’ve noticed several women being harassed on the streets. It happens a lot in areas like City Market. But I don’t think it’s as common in popular parts of the City, like Brigade Road,” she explains.
Ananya, another student, says, “I travel by bus everyday, and women are frequently teased and harassed in them. I’ve noticed it happening at a lot of bus stops as well.” She adds that the best thing for a woman to do when faced by such a situation is to ignore it.
“I try to maintain my timings and avoid areas where I’m likely to get harassed by such men. But if someone does happen to whistle or call after me, I walk out of there as fast as possible. I don’t think creating a scene will help in any way,” she adds. Manisa, an engineering student, agrees that eve teasing is a common occurrence in most crowded places.
“It’s best for girls to be cautious when they are out on their own. I avoid travelling late at nights for this reason, and always roam around with a group of my friends,” she says. When asked about whether they believe that measures like stationing more policemen in crowded areas or introducing a harsher penalty for this offence will help, most women remain skeptical.
“Policemen aren’t bothered about our problems at all. They always advise us to simply walk quickly out of there and not argue. It’s better to just avoid the topic,” says Khushi. Manisa agrees with her. “There are too many eve teasers out there. A couple more policemen won’t make a difference in any way,” she says.
However, Alok Kumar, the Joint Commissioner of Police, claims that measures have been taken to combat this menace. “Policemen, who are deployed to take care of chain snatching and other robbery cases, are on the look out for eve teasing as well, since both are crimes directed against women. We also have some patrolling around colleges during working hours. In addition to this, there are 30 helplines where women, who are being harassed, can call. And in this case, they will be directed to someone who can assist them,” he says.