Evaluating urban safety for women: A composite index approach in metropolitan cities, India

Concerns towards the safety of women have been a focal point of investigation in various global studies, revealing the real and perceived threats concerning the well-being of women in public spaces. Further, it has been highlighted that safety concerns for women, particularly in urban public spaces, create a barrier to their access to mobility, public facilities, and overall security. Considering the multifaceted nature of this issue, this study has developed a multidimensional index, the Urban Safety for Women Index (USWI). This Index comprises three dimensions: Health Security Index (HSI), Infrastructural Security Index (ISI), and Personal Security Index (PSI). Using the USWI, the level of women's safety and security was calculated for 53 Megacities of India (as per Census 2011). The findings of this study highlight an interesting discrepancy in the performance of the most and least populated megacities. Based on USWI, Tiruchirappalli emerged as a relatively high-performing ‘safe city’, across three dimensions and the composite index score. While Delhi, the national capital of India, showed the worst performance on all three dimensions, along with the USWI. Pearson Correlation analysis revealed the independent nature of the three dimensions, mutually contributing towards USWI. Finally, this study demonstrates that to develop a safe city, urban planners must adopt a synergistic approach that simultaneously addresses the interconnected dimensions of health, infrastructure, and the personal security of women in public spaces.