Professionals needed to attend women helpline calls: Minister

Some of the members attending 181 calls are Class XII pass.

2 min readNew DelhiFeb 19, 2015 02:51 AM IST

Women helpline 181 was set up after the 2012 December 16 gangrape incident. (Source: Express Archive)

Taking stock of the work carried out by the Delhi government’s Women and Child Development (WCD) department, WCD Minister Sandeep Kumar discussed the need for qualitative changes in the women helpline 181.

At a meeting held on Tuesday evening, Kumar and senior department officials discussed the need to enlist the help of professional counsellors and lawyers to offer sound advice to women in distress. The department also made a powerpoint presentation before Kumar to apprise him of the work done so far.

“We discussed ways to bring about a qualitative change in the women helpline. We want the counselling offered through the helpline to be done by professionals such as those with a background in psychology or in law. When a person calls on 181, we want a professional to answer the call,” a senior government official said.

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The official said currently, some of the members attending 181 calls are Class XII pass.

“Although they can guide callers about the steps needed to be taken for redressal of a complaint, they have learnt it through work experience,” the official said.

The official also said there were lawyers who are consulted by the helpline, but the WCD hopes to bring a qualitative improvement by engaging more professionals.

The other issues discussed by the minister included a mobile safety button that the WCD is in the process of setting up. The department has been working on a mobile app that will work without a smart phone or the internet.

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