Pic: As many as 10 Meri Saheli teams comprising 25 RPF personnel are deployed under the Meri Saheli project across SWR limitsHubballi: The Railway Protection Force (RPF) of South Western Railway (SWR) has been successfully implementing operation ‘Meri Saheli’, a dedicated initiative launched in Nov 2020 to ensure the safety and security of women passengers travelling alone. The initiative includes collecting feedback from passengers, conducting awareness campaigns, and deploying women officers on select trains to help with boarding and alighting, handling emergency situations, and ensuring overall comfort and security.SWR in a press release stated that, at present, 250 dedicated Meri Saheli teams, comprising lady RPF personnel, are being deployed across the Indian railway. “These teams attend to approximately 500 trains daily, assisting nearly 13,000 women passengers,” the release added.It also mentioned that RPF teams have interacted with 2,08,869 women passengers travelling in 4,869 trains. “At present, 10 Meri Saheli teams consists of 25 RPF personnel deployed under the project across SWR limits. The teams assist women with boarding and alighting, provides information and support during the journey, and responds to emergencies. Confidence-building measures have greatly enhanced women passengers’ sense of safety and trust in rail travel,” it claimed.SWR also stated that information about single women passengers is shared in advance with headquarters and intermediate stations to allow for checks and assistance along the route. “Feedback is regularly collected from women passengers to assess effectiveness and make improvements. Meri Saheli has emerged as one of the most successful women safety initiatives of Indian Railways. By offering proactive engagement, timely guidance, and dedicated presence, RPF has ensured a secure environment for women,” SWR asserted.
