Kerala Police launch ‘Nirbhaya Nisha’ to ensure safe night travel for women

The Kerala Police on Sunday (March 8, 2026) operationalised Nirbhaya Nisha project, an initiative aimed at ensuring safe and independent travel for women across the State during night hours.

The programme was flagged off by State Police Chief Ravada A. Chandrasekhar at a function held at Manaveeyam Veedhi. As part of the launch, he flagged off 28 jeeps driven by women police personnel, marking the implementation of the project across the State.

The Nirbhaya Nisha initiative has been designed to address safety challenges faced by women who travel at night using public transport for work, education, medical needs, and personal or family-related purposes. The service will operate between 9:00 pm and 5:00 am.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had launched the pilot phase of the project last month.

The initiative will rely on the coordinated functioning of several emergency response mechanisms including the Emergency Response and Support System (ERSS), the SOS button in the Pol-App, the 112 emergency helpline, district control rooms, control room vehicles, highway patrols and pink patrol vehicles.

The police also plan to install ‘safety poles’ in busy urban areas where women frequently travel. These poles will be equipped with AI-enabled cameras, alarm panic buttons to attract public attention during emergencies and facial recognition systems to help identify offenders in crowded locations.