On the eve of the seventh anniversary of the brutal December 16 gang rape-murder in Delhi, a group of cyclists and members of a social group rode through the streets of Lucknow on Sunday morning and stressed on the need to have greater awareness regarding safety of women and girls.
“It’s time for young parents to teach their sons to respect women and girls and make them feel comfortable. Also, every girl should share everything — good or bad — with her parents and teachers. The elders, in turn, should listen to them,” said Shalini Tiwari, a teacher, who was a part of a group of 50 cyclists.
Cyclopedia Lucknow, a cycling group aiming at a ‘green and safe Lucknow’, and Jwala foundation, an NGO working for women empowerment through self-defence training, had jointly organised the event.
The group assembled at Gate 1 of Janeswar Mishra Park at 6.15 am and rode to the GPO via the 1090 Crossing.
At the Gandhi statue in Hazratganj, they organised an open mic session in which women were invited to share their views about the safety situation with respect to girls and women.
The event concluded with the participants pledging to make India a safe country for women.
Dr Jayanti, another participant, said, “Women need to empower themselves on their own. Don’t expect others to do that for you.”
Jaya, a government employee, said there was a need to change people’s orthodox mentality, especially their views regarding women.
Prasanta Patnaik