Girls take a walk at Jobra park in Cuttack. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, July 28: Police have decided to appeal to the conscience of witnesses to molestation in an attempt to check these incidents at public places, especially parks, in the city.

Various helpline numbers — police helpline 100, the traffic helpline 1095 and women’s helpline number 181 — will be displayed at the entrance of all parks that fall within the civic body’s limits.

This, the cops say, will encourage people, who are witnesses to molestation attempts, to ring the cops and thus help nab the offenders.

This decision was taken at the traffic management committee meeting chaired by police commissioner Sunil Roy held earlier this week. While the cops are focussing on parks right now, they might also put up such boards at other public places later, a source said.

“The objective is to ensure swift action so that incidents of molestation are checked at public places, especially parks,” said deputy commissioner of police S. Praveen Kumar.

Official sources said the Cuttack Municipal Corporation had been asked to put up the boards and other signage displaying the multiple helpline numbers at 30 parks that fall in its limits.

The civic body has also been asked to ensure better lighting at public places.

Checking incidents of molestation have become a challenge for the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police. Incidents of harassment of women are common at parks at CDA, Bidanasi, Choudhry Bazaar and Khan Nagar.

Local residents said lack of security measures encourages louts to harass people, especially women and young girls, at these parks.

Last week, a few drunken youths tried to molest Swati Jena (name changed), a Plus Three final-year student of Ravenshaw University, who was visiting a park near Jobra along with her friends.

“It was a horrific incident. Around 6pm, some youths began to openly harass me and other girls in the park, but visitors present there did not dare to oppose them,” said Jena.

Senior police officials admit that it is not possible to keep round-the-clock vigil at parks and other public places.

The cops believe that along with regular patrolling and deployment of women constables in plainclothes, displaying the helpline numbers will be helpful in taking timely action against molesters.

“The police should also create awareness and display such helpline numbers at other public places, such as parking lots of shopping malls and other crowded places near the railway station and bus stands,” said Subhranshu Das, a local resident.