The WCD Ministry has approved use of the Nirbhaya Fund for large scale installation of CCTV cameras under the Safe City Project. However, empirical evidence suggests that CCTV cameras are not effective at preventing violence against women, and without any guidelines governing their operation, these cameras will be used against women for voyeurism and moral policing. The fundamental right to privacy exists even in public spaces, and therefore, any use of video surveillance should be within a proper legislative framework with adequate safeguards, and it should be preceded by privacy impact assessments and followed by post ante audits to assess effectiveness.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://internetfreedom.in/women-deserve-both-privacy-and-safety/