For any woman, reaching the police station is often not the first, but the most difficult step in the fight for justice. Before an FIR is registered or an investigation begins, she has to fight her inner fears, societal norms and the doubt whether her voice will really be heard. For many women who have been victims of domestic violence, molestation, stalking, sexual harassment or any other crime, the first interaction with the police determines whether they will continue their fight for justice or quietly return home.
Understanding this reality, the Punjab Police has set up ‘Women’s Help Desks’ in every police station in the state. What was initially seen as just an administrative initiative is now slowly becoming a centre of trust, safety and compassion for women.
Since the inception of these help desks, more than 2.31 lakh complaints related to crimes against women and children have been registered through them. This figure not only indicates the seriousness of the crimes, but also indicates that more women are now coming forward to seek help than ever before.
Today, these Women Help Desks are functioning in all 424 police stations of Punjab, including 39 Special Purpose Police Stations, providing a dedicated support system to women from every corner of the state.
This initiative of Punjab is also part of the efforts to make policing more sensitive at the national level. Under the ‘Nirbhaya Fund’, the Union Home Ministry encouraged the establishment of Women Help Desks in police stations across the country, so that a safe and trustworthy environment can be created for women who do not approach the police due to fear, social pressure or hesitation. Taking this initiative forward, Punjab has made trained (trained) women police personnel the first point of contact for victims.
According to government data, 1,33,152 complaints related to women and children were received on the Punjab Grievance Disposal (PGD) portal between January 1, 2023 and June 30, 2026. Out of these, 99,692 complaints, i.e. about 75 percent, were handed over to ‘Punjab Police Mahila Mitran’ (PPMMs).
These figures do not just indicate the number of complaints, they are also an indication that more and more women are now gathering the courage to speak up instead of remaining silent. Experts related to women’s rights have long said that when a victim gets the opportunity to talk to a sensitive woman police officer for the first time, the chances of her registering a complaint and continuing the fight for justice increase.
The experience of Punjab Police also points in this direction. According to Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav, the women help desks have not only made the police easier to reach, but have also strengthened gender-sensitive policing and increased public confidence.
He said that these help desks have been successful in making police stations more trustworthy and comfortable places for women. At present, 848 ‘Punjab Police Mahila Mitras’ are posted in all 424 police stations of the state.
This change has not only been structural but also in mindset
Before the ‘Punjab Police Mahila Mitras’ project was launched in the year 2021, most of the complaints related to women and children were heard by male police personnel. Today, these 848 trained Mahila Mitras are working dedicatedly in cases related to women, children and the elderly.
Their role is not limited to filing complaints. They inform victims about the legal process, coordinate with the investigation team, connect them with counselling and other support when needed and sometimes come forward as a support that the victim needs the most.
To further strengthen this initiative, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has recently approved 93 electric scooters for women police personnel associated with the Women Help Desks and Mahila Mitra initiative. These scooters, flagged off by DGP Gaurav Yadav, will help women police personnel reach even remote areas faster.
Apart from this, 10 women police stations and 15 women cells are also functioning in Punjab. Trained women police personnel posted here provide victims with confidential counselling, legal advice, counselling and other necessary support.
Punjab Police is no longer limited to just expanding these facilities. An independent evaluation of the effectiveness of the Women Help Desks is also being done in collaboration with J-PAL and Heartech Foundation, to know how much this initiative is strengthening women’s access to justice, the support provided to victims and the trust of the people.
Special DGP (Community Affairs and Women Affairs) Gurpreet Deo says that the Women Help Desks have played a vital role in building a bridge of trust between the police and the society. According to him, these desks have given women the confidence that their voices will be heard with compassion and sensitivity.
The success of these Women Help Desks for Punjab cannot be measured by the figure of 2.31 lakh complaints alone. The real change is that more and more women are now gathering the courage to walk up to the door of the police station and share their pain with another woman without any fear.
Behind every complaint lies a story of a woman, child or family who decided to raise their voice instead of remaining silent. Therefore, the Women Help Desk is becoming not just another counter at the police station, but a place where fear slowly turns into trust and the journey of justice takes its first step.
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