JOIN USIf you are travelling in Delhi Metro, beware of suspicious female commuters as almost 94 per cent of pickpockets held in the rapid transport system of the National Capital Region this year belong to the fair sex.
Figures calculated for the first three months (January to March) this year by the CISF, the nodal security agency for Delhi Metro, show that out of the total 126 pickpockets held, 118 were women.
“Women pickpockets have an intelligent modus operandi. They either carry a young child with them or mingle in the crowd so well that their intentions become undoubtful. They largely target women passengers,” a senior official said.
Officials securing the 134 Metro stations in the NCR – Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad – say that commuters on the rapid rail service should be vigilant about their belongings and keep a tab on activities taking place around them in the coach and on the platform.
The abundance of women pickpockets have been a subject of challenge for security agencies in the Metro network, including the CISF, as the figures for last year also depict a similar picture.
In 2013, out of the total 466 pickpockets held from Metro stations, 421 were women while the rest 45 were male. Women constituted 90.34 per cent of the pickpockets in the network, considered the lifeline of the NCR’s public transport system.
Both the Central Industrial Security Force and police units have launched special drives to identify and nab pickpockets with special focus on women, an official said.
Women officials of the CISF have been deployed in plainclothes to keep a check on women who try to secretly whisk away valuables and cash from passengers in the Metro, the official said.
In January this year, the CISF also punished 586 men who were found travelling in coaches exclusively meant for women. Besides, 56 people were apprehended by CISF so far this year for walking on Metro tracks.
Seven instances of illegal arms being seized at the Metro entrance were also reported in the first three months. The CISF has deployed close to 5,000 personnel to secure the network against any sabotage activity and security threats.