"Despite dedicated funding under the Nirbhaya Fund and Safe City Projects, urban public spaces remain unsafe for women." Analyse the implementation gaps and suggest reforms.

On 28 September 2026, the Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of sexual assaults on minors in Delhi-NCR. It flagged "grossly inadequate illumination" and "lax patrolling" in public spaces [1]. Delhi has been covered by the Safe City Project since 2018 [5], so the problem lies in delivering results, not in finding money.

Implementation gaps

• Slow fund flow: by March 2020, only ₹2,647 crore of ₹7,436 crore had been disbursed [3]. Use reached about 76% (₹5,846.08 crore of ₹7,712.85 crore) only by FY 2024-25 [2].
• Delayed projects: Safe City was meant to end in 2021 but was extended [5]. Parliament found Delhi components such as Gun Shot Detection only "Partially Operational," against a ₹1,951.11 crore outlay across 8 cities [4].
• Measuring inputs, not outcomes: official reports count money spent and women trained in self-defence [6]. They do not count dark stretches lit or crime reduced at hotspots.
• Weak coordination: in 2020, Parliament's Standing Committee blamed delays on "ineffective coordination" between ministries and states [3].
• Gaps across state lines and in transport: one assault the Court cited took place inside a bus running from Greater Noida (UP) to Delhi. That falls outside both a single police force's area and an audit of fixed spots [1].
• Weak deterrence: Fast Track Special Courts are spread unevenly, from 218 in Uttar Pradesh to 14 in Tamil Nadu [3]. This makes punishment less certain.

Reforms

• Outcome dashboard: MHA should publish the status of each Safe City component. City-specific quarterly audits, as Parliament urged, should back this up [4].
• Single oversight: set up the Cabinet Secretary-chaired committee that Parliament recommended, so one senior officer can clear delays between agencies [3].
• Joint action: audits should bring together the police, civic bodies and neighbouring states. The SC order already covers transit hubs and requires faulty lights and cameras to be repaired [1].
• Safe transport: CCTV and panic buttons in all public transport [3].
• Policing and justice: more women police officers, women's cells in police stations, and a more even spread of fast-track courts [3].

The funds have paid for the tools, but no one is being held accountable for results. Linking spending to outcome audits, unifying oversight and ensuring swift justice would turn the Court's Article 21 vision of dignity, free from the fear of violence [1], into lived reality. It would also advance SDG 5 and SDG 11's goal of safe, inclusive cities.