Amidst the global celebration of International Women’s Day, a dark shadow casts over Gujarat. Every five minutes, a woman’s life is shattered by domestic violence in the state.

In 2023, Gujarat’s women’s helpline number ‘Abhayam’ recorded 98,830 calls from women in need.

Helpline calls regarding domestic violence 

Domestic violence helpline calls on Abhayam in Gujarat jumped 61% in 2023 compared to 2019 and 22% compared to 2022.

Experts say that the year 2020 saw a rise in calls for domestic violence during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Ahmedabad’s darker side

Ahmedabad had the highest number of domestic violence calls in 2023, at 17,642. It included 4,815 calls regarding harassment and 2,155 calls for extramarital affairs.

What are the issues that women in Gujarat called the helpline about in 2023? 

The highest number of calls (10,373) received in the state were regarding extramarital affairs. 10,164 calls were received to complain of physical harassment, 7,243 regarding legal issues and 5,131 calls were recorded regarding custody of child issues.

Moreover, 3,345 women from Gujarat called the helpline number in cases of being pushed out of the house. Relationship issues recorded 2,839 calls, 2,758 calls regarding being harassed via phone calls, and lastly, financial issues related calls were 2,085.

Helpline calls across Gujarat districts in last nine years

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