- Empowered Committee of Officers for Nirbhaya funds scheme has approved pilot Safe City projects in eight selected metropolitan cities. These eight cities are Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Lucknow. The Empowered Committee of Officers is an inter-ministerial committee. It appraises and recommends various proposals/projects proposed by different Ministries/Departments/States.
- The Nirbhaya fund scheme seeks to support initiatives by the government and NGOs working towards protecting the dignity and ensuring safety of women in India. It was set up in 2013 in the aftermath of the gruesome gang-rape and murder in Delhi.
- The cost of the Safe city projects is shared between the Central Government and the concerned States in 60:40 ratio. The Safe City Project in Delhi is fully funded by the Central Government.
- Some of the key features of the safe city project include: a) Identification of sensitive hot spots in each city, b) Installation of CCTV surveillance covering the entire hot spot, c) Automated number plate reading machines to be deployed in extremely sensitive areas, d) Intensive patrolling in vulnerable areas beyond the identified hot spots, e) Improving street lighting and public toilet facilities for women and f) Others like setting up women help desks in police stations, augmentation of women support centres etc.
