More than 3 Lakh women provided assistance through 701 One Stop Centres in 35 States/UTs

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The Ministry of Women and Child Development has informed that over 3 Lakh Women have been provided assistance through 701 One Stop Centre in 35 States/UTs.

One-Stop Centre Scheme (OSCs) is being implemented across the country since 1st April 2015 through State Governments and Union Territory (UT) Administrations to provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence and in distress, both in private and public spaces, under one roof.

The scheme facilitates immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of services including police, medical, legal aid, counselling, and psychological support to fight against any forms of violence against women.

Till date, 701 OSCs in 35 States/UTs have been operationalised.

In the prevalent situation created due to the Covid-19 pandemic, women who are in a distress situation or affected by violence can contact the nearest OSCs for speedy assistance and services.

Currently, the WCD Ministry has directed the Chief Secretaries and administrators of all States and UTs and DC/DM of all Districts to keep One Stop Centres operational even during the lockdown period with the availability of all the basic material required for fighting COVID-19 like Sanitizers. Soaps, Masks etc.

As of now, Madhya Pradesh has set up 52 OSCs, the highest across the whole country followed by Bihar, Gujrat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Rajasthan which have operationalized more than 30 OSCs each.

The need for One-Stop Centres for women in distress

The 12th Plan Working Group on Women’s Agency and Empowerment had recommended setting up of One-Stop Crisis Centres, on a pilot basis, to provide shelter, police desk, legal, medical and counselling services to victims of violence under one roof that would be integrated with a 24-hour Helpline system.

In 2013, Justice (Retd.) Usha Mehra Commission recommended a report that suggested setting up measures to improve women’s safety by establishing a “one-stop centre” at a notified hospital to help victims of sexual assault and ensure speedy punishment to culprits.

Following these recommendations, the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), formulated a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for setting up One Stop Centre, the subscheme of a larger Umbrella Scheme under National Mission for Empowerment of women including Indira Gandhi Mattritav Sahyaog Yojana.