Economic Survey shows a rise in Crime Against Women- Mumbai Women feel safe

Women claim they feel safe in Mumbai, despite official records showing a rise in crime against women. According to the Economic Survey of Maharashtra, 2019-20 cases of crime against women have increased in the state. The survey was tabled in the State Legislative Assembly by Finance Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday. 

The 2018-19 economic survey defined crime against women as, “Direct or indirect physical or mental cruelty to women.” According to a report published in the Times of India, the number of cases filed against women in 2019 was 37,567 whereas 35,497 and 31,997 cases were registered in 2018 and 2017, respectively. 

I did a survey to find out what women feel about the rise in crime against women in the state. Arshdip Gill, a resident of Borivali, believes that crime in Mumbai has not increased. While she is not sure about the rest of Maharashtra, she feels safe in Mumbai. “I feel safe even if I go out at one o’clock at night. In Mumbai’s environment, I can stay out the whole night without any fear,” says Gill. 

Purti Parab, who lives in Mulund, does not feel that crime has increased much in Mumbai. She believes that other cities in Maharashtra might have a higher crime rate against women when compared to Mumbai. “In villages, women are afraid to go to the police station to report any crime because they are afraid that it might lead to the defamation of the family,” says Parab. She thinks half of the cases in the villages are not even registered.

According to Rega Das, a resident of Thane, crimes are happening at “odd hours”. Overall crime is increasing in India but I don’t see an increase in crime in Mumbai. She says, “I feel safe when I am surrounded by people when I am outside Mumbai.” She has not witnessed crime in Mumbai recently. She gets updated about crimes through broadcast media only. Seema Marbhal, a resident of Andheri also feels that media channels exaggerate the news about crime against women. She further added “Other states may be unsafe but not Mumbai.”

Archana Rajguru, a resident of Kurla, is of the opinion that women have to protect themselves. She feels that constant surveillance makes Mumbai very safe for women. Reema Pujari, a resident of Vidya vihar also agreed with Rajguru. She says, “Mumbai has less crime rates in comparison to other cities in India.” She urged that the government should provide better facilities to make places in Mumbai safer. It is important to change the “Nazariya” of people. 

Talking about stricter laws, Pamelina D’Souza, a student of Bachelor of Arts at St. Xavier’s College, said that police should be swift in taking actions against the accused. A victim of molestation, D’Souza narrated her story when police failed to act in spite of filing a FIR. Such things have “interrupted her daily routine” and sometimes she feels it is not the city that is unsafe but the laws that need to be stricter to make the city safer. 

To be happy or not- the ball is in your court

“I lost my fingers due to burning. I used to live in Khaira village and there was no hospital. I am suffering from this condition since 20 years. One day a man in my village told me about a hospital in Wadala. I went there for the treatment. Since then, the pain is less. The doctor told me that there is no treatment available for my condition and it is non-communicable. If I touch you, you will not be affected. This condition does not stop me from anything. I love to cook. I make chapattis, mutton and fish. Fish is my favorite. Earlier I used to go to catch fish but now I have stopped. One of my legs got injured while fishing and it is still in the recovering phase. I am alone in my home but I don’t like being alone, so I come here (Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus) every morning from Monday to Saturday to beg. This the only source of money I have. My husband died 20 years ago. He had no savings. I earned and married off my two daughters. I am 70 years old and my daughters are 40 and 30 years old. They rarely come to visit me. They cannot help me financially as their in-laws are against it. Today a woman gave me ‘dhokhla’ so my dinner is done and I will not cook today. In evening I go back, watch television and then go to sleep. I know there is a lot of struggle but what can I do? I try to remain happy and enjoy the rest of my life,” says Budibai
.

Budibai outside CSMT

Where there is a will, there are 100 ways

"I lost my eyes because of swimming. I am from Satara. I shifted to Bombay in 2009. I am currently working with a firm in Kurla. I love swimming and I used to swim a lot in Satara. In villages there are no swimming pools so you have to swim in rivers and wells. The water in these sources affected my eyes badly. Till 2009 I could see a little bit and I had color perception but after 2009 my vision automatically decreased and now I am completely blind. Doctor told me that blood circulation has stopped in my eyes. Even if I get them operated, it will be worthless. But I am still trying to find a cure for this, lets hope for the best," says Ganesh.

PS: I was standing near one of the ladies compartments (Mumbai local) which is adjacent to the handicap compartment. I saw this smartly dressed man coming from a far distance. He stopped exactly at the handicap compartment. Curious to know how he did it, I struck a conversation with him. I would have loved to talk to him more but our conversation was interrupted by the arrival of his train.

Me and Ganesh at Kurla Station

How to crack XIC online entrance test (OET) entrance exam

I have completed PGDM in Journalism and Mass Communication from XIC. Currently, I am working with CarbonCopy. You can find my work on Muck Rack.

Since I found it very difficult to get the details about XIC online entrance test (OET), I wrote this blog in 2019.

The blog comprises of XIC OET sample paper pattern and how I prepared for the entrance exam.

Let me clarify one thing at first, St. Xavier's College and XIC are two different entities.

What is the placement scenario at XIC?

Also, XIC placement is not good. Half of our class is struggling to find a job. With COVID the condition has worsened.

If you are joining XIC don't depend upon the college for placements. Keep looking for opportunities by yourself.

XIC Entrance Exam Pattern

The XIC online entrance test(OET) took place on 18th May 2019 in Delhi. I appeared for the exam. The timing was 11-12:30 but XIC OET did not start at that time. As soon as you reach the venue you can start writing the test. It is an online test for one and a half hour.

How to Prepare for XIC OET?

So I have been preparing for the entrance examination of Journalism colleges. I googled a lot about the XIC OET sample paper pattern but there was nothing much about it. So I thought why shouldn't I write about t and help the upcoming batch to clear XIC OET.

I have been going through current affairs to prepare for XIC OET but it was not helpful. 

Objective Questions in XIC OET

The entrance exam has two sections: objective and subjective. The objective part has a lot of parts each comprising of different fields. The objective section is of 60 minutes The first part was general knowledge. 

Current affairs were not asked in the exam. There was also a part of verbal and nonverbal reasoning. There were many match the columns. Read the taglines of different brands. It will help you to get good marks.

There were also picture questions that consisted of famous personalities. One of the parts contains some media-related questions.

There were also questions on mirror images of certain words.
The timer starts ticking as soon as you submit the objective part. 

Subjective Questions

The subjective part of XIC OET consists of 3 questions with 30 minutes time limit. The first question is picture writing. You have to write a story according to the picture given in 100 words.

The second question was a general view question. For example, how the technologies introduced by the government are not helping poor people. The word limit was 250. 

In the third question, there are two topics and you have to write on either of the topics in 150 words. 

Keep in mind the time before writing the essays. Don't spend much time on the first question since you have to write minimum characters. Utilize your time effectively. 

Once you submit the subjective section the screen displays your marks for the objective part. Tell one of the invigilators about it. They will confirm your result from the authorities. If you happen to clear the cut off you will be called for an interview. 

Interview

I had a skype interview. The interviewers were very friendly. They made me very comfortable. They asked me why I wanted to join a journalism course at XIC. It was followed by my opinion of Ravish Kumar(as I had mentioned him in my interview). They also asked me about Punya Prasun Bajpai.

We had a discussion about PM Modi's interview with Akshay Kumar and his radar comment. They asked me whether I follow regional politics. After that, they also put up a question from my statement of purpose. They asked whether I follow international news also. The next question was about Brexit. They asked me where I want to work in Delhi or Mumbai. At last, they asked me if I had any questions to ask from them.

Feedback on the whole process

The XIC OET interview part was good and quite enriching. We had a very good interaction on various facts. The part on XIC OETexam which needs to be focussed on is the subjective part because time is limited. Nevertheless, you are only called for the interview if you pass in the objective section. So prepare well and all the best. 😀

Also if you want to experience XIC through pictures, check the link: XIC through my lens

For more information, you connect with me on Instagram or LinkedIn.