UK Issues Travel Advisory On Women Safety In India

India is becoming notorious for its rising rape cases. The horrifying gang rape cases of a 26-year-old veterinary doctor from Hyderabad and a young woman from Unnao in Uttar Pradesh has set off shock waves across the world. This surge in number of crimes against women in India has led to countries like UK to issue a safety advisory for its women who are travelling to the country.

Recently, the UK government took to their website and published a safety advisory for its women travellers travelling to India.

Key Takeaways:

• UK has issued a safety advisory for its women who are travelling to the country
• The advisory says women should exercise caution when travelling in India even if travelling in a group.
• A similar advisory was issued by US in March 2019 which asked its women travellers to stay in groups when in India

The advisory is titled 'India Travel Advice' and was posted on November 19, 2019.  In this, the government mentioned in the Safety and security category that women travellers “should exercise caution when travelling in India even if travelling in a group.”

The advisory clearly suggests that women travellers in India are unsafe. They are also at a higher risk of getting assaulted. Therefore, British women should exercise caution when in India.

Also read: Hyderabad Encounter: Five Questions We Should Be Asking As A Nation

The advisory also asked women to respect the local dress codes and customs. It also suggested them to:

• Avoid isolated areas when alone at any time of day,
• Avoid travelling alone in a public transport
• Not leave drinks unattended.

The advisory is titled 'India Travel Advice' and was posted on 19th November,2019.  In this, the government mentioned in the Safety and security category that women travellers "should exercise caution when travelling in India even if travelling in a group."

“If you’re the victim of abuse call 100 for police assistance or 1091 or 1096 if you’re the victim of sexual harassment,” it added.

There is a part of advisory that gave examples of foreign nationals who were sexually assaulted. It said, “British women have been the victims of sexual assault in Goa, Delhi and Rajasthan and women travellers often receive unwanted attention in the form of verbal and physical harassment by individuals or groups of men. Serious sexual attacks involving foreign nationals have been reported. In April 2018, a Latvian woman was sexually assaulted and strangled in Thiruvallam, Kerala. More recently, in December 2018 a British woman was raped in Goa.”

US Advisory

The UK advisory is quite similar to the US advisory published in March this year. It said that Indian authorities report rape as one of the fastest growing crimes in India and asked to exercise increased caution. “Indian authorities report rape is one of the fastest growing crimes in India. Violent crime, such as sexual assault, has occurred at tourist sites and in other locations.”

The US advisory also asked women to travel in groups and stay vigilant of their surroundings when in India.

Also Read: Should We Celebrate The Custodial Killing Of Hyderabad Rape Accused?