NCW receives 1.5 lakh complaints annually, domestic violence tops list: Vijaya Rahatkar

The National Commission for Women receives around 1.5 lakh complaints annually, with domestic violence accounting for the highest number of cases, NCW Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar has said.

In an interview with PTI, Ms. Rahatkar said there are multiple ways, including the commission’s online portal, Management Information System (MIS), email, in person and its 24×7 helpline, for women to approach the NCW to register their complaints.

“We receive around 1.5 lakh complaints annually. If we look at the cases falling under our mandate, domestic violence accounts for the highest number of complaints,” she said.

“No woman should feel that she could not approach the NCW simply because she did not know how to file a complaint,” she said, referring to the commission’s helpline number 14490 and its website.

Ms. Rahatkar also highlighted the commission’s outreach initiative, ‘Rashtriya Mahila Aayog Aapke Dwar’, under which it conducts public hearings in different states to reach women who may find it difficult to approach the NCW.

“We decided that if these women cannot come to us, we will go to them,” she said.

She said that since she took charge as NCW Chairperson, the commission has conducted more than 200 in-person public hearings in villages and other locations across the country over the past 1.5 years.

“We have met a large number of women and tried to resolve their problems,” she said, adding that the NCW also conducts programmes to create awareness about women’s legal rights and build their confidence.

Ms. Rahatkar said the NCW should be seen as “maayka” (maternal home) by women.

“I have always told women and daughters across the country that the National Commission for Women should feel like their maayka — their maternal home. There should be no fear or hesitation in approaching the commission,” she said.

“When a woman faces a problem, whom does she approach first? She goes to her mother. Similarly, the commission should be like a maternal home for women. They can approach us without fear or hesitation,” she added.