Women’s hostels in every district: FM praised, but security posers raised

Kirdat said such hostels, if they are set up, would benefit women and girls coming from outside the districts. “For example, in Pune there are several women and girls who either come to study or work from nearby districts. For them, such government hostels would be of immense benefit. Otherwise they have to keep searching for private accommodation which are not safe and are costly as well,” he said.

‘Timeframe for setting up hostels must’

Seema Sawale, former PCMC standing committee chairperson, said, “The move is good provided the government keeps its word and sets a timeframe within which the hostels would come up. Along with the hostels, it is important that safety and security measures are also announced for women and girls. The budget has missed this point.”

Amika Limbu, who is a North-East resident, said, “Whenever we are in Pune, it is not easy for us, especially women, to get accommodation. We face many problems in getting private accommodation. The government hostels would be in our interest. But at the same time, I am writing to the Union Finance Ministry to set up exclusive police stations for North-East citizens in every district of the country. This will make our lives for comfortable and secured.”

SK Souriio Hitler, another North-East resident, said, “The move to set up hostels for girls in every district of the country is a welcome one. It will make outstation women a little comfortable knowing that a government accommodation is available for them. At the same time, it would high been better if the budget had announced safey measures for women in every district of the country.”

Manjusha Kochare, a women’s activist, said, “While I welcome the Finance Minister’s initiative, she has not announced how much intake capacity will be there in the proposed hostels. If one hostel is going to come up, then the question arises as to how they will cope up with huge demand. I think such hostels are really going to face problem of accommodating huge number of applicants.”

Newly elected PMC corporator Aishwarya Pathare said, “The budget adopts a holistic, 360 degree approach. It is anchored in Viksit Bharat. It has targetted initiatives for women including setting up of hostels in every district and others for self help groups. We are confident it will deliver on its objectives.” BJP MP Medha Kulkarni said, “Several sectors have received focused attention in the budget along with initiatives for women’s development and safety. The announcement of hostels for women in every district is a highly welcome one.”