On a cold, rainy Sunday night, two policemen in khaki uniforms and fluorescent yellow jackets stand among commuters at a bus shelter in the Indian capital, occasionally stepping out to stop passing buses and climbing on board to conduct inspections.
A white police car halts to check in with the men stationed at the bus stop. Some minutes after, two other constables walk past on their night patrol which they say runs from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. daily.
The security at this infamous bus stand in Delhi`s Munirka district is not surprising. It was here on December 16, 2012 that a 23-year-old trainee physiotherapist boarded an unregistered bus and was fatally gang raped in a case that led to nationwide protests and forced authorities to tighten laws on sex crimes.
But two years on, police attention to this particular bus stand remains an exception rather than a rule, say women commuters and activists, as government pledges on everything from better street lighting and public transport to more policing remain unfulfilled.
“The cops at this bus stop have just been here for a few days – maybe because the anniversary is coming. They were never here before. I`ve never seen them at other bus stops at night,” said 24-year-old student Meghlai Lama.
“I don`t think much has changed. Whether I feel safer is not even a question worth asking,” said Lama, as she waited for a bus to the same destination as the victim of the high-profile crime two years ago.
A poll published by Hindustan Times newspaper on Tuesday, the anniversary of the Delhi gang rape, said 90 percent of 2,557 women surveyed did not see any improvements in safety. The same survey found 86 percent of respondents avoided going out alone after dark.
Police and government officials argue that a host of measures have been introduced to improve safety, but add that violence against women is a far more deep-rooted problem which cannot be solved in just two years.
“We have taken a whole range of steps to improve security for women over the last two years,” said Rajan Bhagat, spokesperson for Delhi police. “It`s not true to say nothing has changed … it is a long process.”