In a year, the Delhi Women’s Helpline received over 6.30 lakh calls, most of which were for domestic abuse. The Chief of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), Swati Maliwal, said that they received about 40 lakh calls on their helpline number – 181 in the last seven years, with 6.30 lakh calls received between July 2022 and July 2023. She also mentioned that the commission received 92,000 cases in total, of which around 11,000 instances had been received from outside of Delhi, that is people travelling to the jurisdiction of the national capital to record their lawsuit.
Maliwal questioned the accountability of the Delhi Police by releasing data based on the number of cases received by the DCW and urged the government to convene a meeting to resolve the matter. According to DCW data, the commission has received 38,342 cases of domestic violence; 9516 cases of neighbour disputes; 5895 cases of rape and sexual harassment; 4229 cases of kidnapping; 3647 cases of POCSO Act violations; and 3558 cases related to cyber crime.
The DCW has a 24-hour hotline for women in crisis called 181. The caller is counselled and, if necessary, the complaint is forwarded to authorities, such as the Delhi Police, hospitals and shelter houses, for resolution. In most circumstances, a team of counsellors is sent to the location to assist the women in distress.