Women living in night shelters at huge risk: DCW chief Swati Maliwal

New Delhi: Following a surprise inspection at several night shelters in the national capital, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal on Sunday said the women staying at the shelters are living in precarious conditions and that their safety is at huge risk.

"We have received a complaint regarding the safety of women living in night shelters. To some extent we found it correct. We stayed the entire night in a night shelter. The girls are living in precarious conditions, their safety is at huge risk," Maliwal told ANI.

She further stated that the DCW has taken the matter into cognizance, adding that they would inform the government about the situation.

"Today itself we will write the letter. The entire DCW team was here for the investigation," she added.

Earlier in October last year, Maliwal visited three night shelters run by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) in Nizamuddin and Jama Masjid area of Delhi and said that the night shelters were not only few in number, they were extremely unsafe for women.

The DUSIB has 198 night shelters with a capacity of 16,338. These shelters are being managed through 17 shelter management agencies and equipped with basic facilities like blankets, mats, toilets and drinking water, first-aid box and fire extinguishers.