India TV Fact Check: A post has been going viral on social media for the past several days in which it is being claimed that the police are providing free travel facilities to women at night across the country. However, when India TV fact-checked this claim, it turned out to be misleading.
What is going viral?
The claim about a new police initiative providing free travel for women at night is spreading rapidly on social media. A user named Ashish Paswan wrote on Facebook - "The police has started a free travel scheme, where any woman who is alone and is unable to find a vehicle to go home between 10 pm and 06 am can contact the police helpline number 1091 and 7837018555 and request a vehicle. They will work 24×7, and the woman alone will be taken to her safe place. Everyone should share as much as possible." Similarly, Shrivant Beria shared a similar message on X, and several posts claim this facility is now available nationwide.
India TV investigated
Given the viral nature of the claim about the police offering free travel for women at night, we decided to investigate the matter. Initially, we searched Google Open Search using relevant keywords but we did not find any news about the latest scheme by the police of any state. Subsequently, we checked X and found tweets from both Bengaluru Police and Hyderabad Police. The police of both cities have denied this claim. Both police departments have stated that the message about free travel from 10 pm to 6 am is false.
Upon further investigation, we found a 2019 news article from HT reporting that Ludhiana Police had announced a scheme where women unable to find a vehicle between 10 pm and 6 am could request a ride from the police helpline numbers 112, 1091, and 7837018555. The police control room vehicle will drop them safely to their destination free of cost.
Additionally, we also found a tweet from Nagpur Police on December 4, 2019. In this, Nagpur Police has mentioned that they are providing a "Home-Drop" facility for the safety of women. Any woman who is alone/stranded, who does not have any means to go home between 9 pm to 5 am, we will safely drop her to her home free of cost. Women in need could call 100, 1091, or 07122561103 for a free ride home.
What came out in fact check?
A fact check by India TV has confirmed that no recent nationwide scheme for free travel by police for women at night has been announced. The facilities provided by Ludhiana and Nagpur Police in 2019 were localised and not implemented across the country. Thus, the current claims about such a nationwide service are misleading. People are advised to be cautious of these claims.
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