Bengaluru Student Creates Map, Pins Down Sexual Harassment Zones

Most women had faced sexual harassment at one point of time. Triggered by the recent incident when a veterinary doctor was raped and burnt alive in Telangana, a Bengaluru student, Nupur Patny was motivated to develop a map that marks down sexual harassment-prone areas in the city. She calls the project ‘It’s Not My Fault’, and aims at reclaiming the streets. The focus was to creating an easiest way to map down harassment zones across the city. Nupur came up with the idea that could also help policemen nab the culprits without delay. She also wants to support the victims of sexual harassment on a digital platform, reports IE.

Nupur Patny's sexual harassment map
PC The Indian Express

“Even though India is said to have a zero-tolerance policy against any kind of sexual harassment, our country lacks a zero-tolerance attitude towards letting such incidents take place,” believes Nupur Patny, Indian Express reported After interacting with several women in the city, Nupur collected data on incidents of sexual harassment in crowded or secluded places, and developed this map. She used her technology skills to highlight the sexual-harassment zones in the city.

Key Takeaways:

• Bengaluru student, Nupur Patny develops a map that marks down sexual harassment-prone areas in the city. She calls the project ‘It’s Not My Fault’, and aims at reclaiming the streets.
• “Even though India is said to have a zero-tolerance policy against any kind of sexual harassment, our country lacks a zero-tolerance attitude towards letting such incidents take place,” believes Nupur Patny.
• The focus was on creating an easy way to map down harassment zones across the city. She also wants to support the victims of sexual harassment on a digital platform.
• Nupur is a fourth-year student at the Department of Human Centred Design at the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology.

She created the map noting down the incidents of inappropriate touching, groping, or any kind of improper gestures or sexual advances in public transport or crowded places and photographed without permission.

Nupur is a fourth-year student at the Department of Human Centred Design at the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology. “The victims of such incidents often end up not reporting the same as they are confused about how and where to share their testimonial. An open platformfor them to do so and to ensure that action is being taken to avoid the repeat is what ‘It’s Not My Fault’ is trying to do,” Nupur said.

“My map is a free space for women to share their experience of sexual harassment in specific locations that have taken place. Going very local as to understanding what harassment happened and what kind of changes are needed which can eventually help the police to take preventive measures to avoid such situations and make women feel safer wherever they are and whatever they are wearing,” Nupur told India Today.

Nupur also gave an example of one such sexual harassment prone area in the city. She said the RWF West Colony, located nearby her college in Yelahanka New Town, is termed ‘Rapist Lane’ by students. “With no proper streetlights and buses parked close to each other, this lane is a hideout for anti-social elements, and is a prime example of many such areas in the city which are prone to sexual harassment incidents,” she says.

Praising the initiative, Bengaluru Police Commissioner told India Today, “This is a great initiative which she has taken up which we as police persons will not be able to do but it will be of tremendous value to us. So, I called the young girl here and said you can do something beyond this. And she had her team of friends who are very much willing to come and help us to make a diagram of Bengaluru where women’s harassment takes place the most. Definitely, this input will be very useful for us to fix surveillance cameras for our Bengaluru safe city project.”

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“With the map on display allowing users to view these areas in their vicinity using augmented reality, I tend to encourage women to interact with such spaces more to spread awareness on how to avoid such situations there rather than contributing to further panic,” Nupur explained.

Feature Image Credit: The Indian Express

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