On December 21 last year, a business class traveller on a flight from Mumbai to Newark, US, allegedly groped a female passenger. The 40-year-old especially changed his seat to economy class to sit next to the sleeping woman and then put his hands on his breasts.
The lady and Air India (AI-191, the said flight) then proceeded to file a complaint against him once they arrived in the US. He was then handed over to the police.
In another incident, an Air India flight attendant alleged that a middle-aged passenger misbehaved and touched her inappropriately on the AI 974 flight from Delhi to Muscat. The man was later apprehended and handed over to security.
Unfortunately, these are not one off incidents.
Several instances of sexual harassment and outrage that took place over the last couple of years seems to have prompted Air India to issue directives to reserve seats for women. Yes, you read that right!
Reserved seats for women travellers
In a surprise announcement (post the December 21st incident), Air India stated that it will reserve six seats in the third row of the economy class for women passengers. The directive has been implemented from January 17 and is aimed at who are travelling alone.
An official from the airline stated that it is the first time any airline has taken this decision.
"We are doing this as we get lots of requests by female passengers at the check-in counter who want to sit next to another woman, rather than a male passenger," explained G. Prasada Rao, Air India's general manager for corporate communications, as he spoke to Reuters.
Although he didn't connect the sexual assault case to this move, he said that this step has been taken to provide more comfort to female passengers.
"It is not connected to the reports of sexual assaults. It's more to do with the fact that economy class doesn't have much space to move around easily and comfortably for women, so this option will give them more choice," added Rao.
He added that to avail this offer, passengers will bear no extra cost and will be up for grabs up till an hour before check-in closes.
Reservation for women protection?
Incidentally, India already has reservation for women in various public transports including buses, metros and trains. With this announcement a private transport is also been added to the list.
Many experts cite sexual assault and harassment for such steps especially when National Crime Records Bureau reports that a crime against a woman takes place every two minutes.
And even though many people are opposing this announcement citing more gender discrimination, some women are calling it fair.
Meera Bandhu, a Delhi-based architect says, "I travel alone and always make sure to take the aisle seat because it's always a safer option. You never know when and how people behave and so it's better to be safe. However, this move is a refreshing change and I support it. No harm in letting people know their behaviour leads to such changes."
But not everybody is in favour.
Bhumika Chaturvedi*, a mum of two says, "This seems to be a strange step. Here I am trying to teach my son and daughter that both genders are equal and a private airline takes such a drastic step. I am not sure if this is such a progressive idea!"
When travelling alone
Although verdict of the people seems a bit divided, we leave it upto you to decided what you think of it. For now, be safe when you travel and keep a few things in mind if you're doing so alone.
- Keep people in the loop: If you are travelling alone, make sure you have informed a few close family members or friends of your whereabouts. This is a precaution you can take to make sure they can keep a tab and help you out if need be.
- Be alert: Nothing can help you more than being alert. If you are on a long-haul flight, make sure you are aware of who you are sitting next to and if you do not feel comfortable, ask for a seat change.
- Trust your instincts: Women are naturally blessed with great instincts so use them wisely and act on them. If you feel unsafe and cannot trust the person sitting next to you, try to look for an alternative seat or inform the cabin crew of your apprehensions so they are on alert as well.
Read: Women can carry small knives in Delhi Metro. Here's what women think about the move
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[Name changed on request* | All images courtesy: Instagram]
