Young Pallavi Purkayastha was brutally attacked and killed by her building’s security guard inside her apartment in Mumbai. This is not just a sad incident, it rings alarm bells for all us who live in large towns.
Big cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore are bustling with singles, and couples who work late into the night. This often leaves the woman alone in the apartment. Add to that the fact that many security agencies tend to hire shady personnel because of their easy availability and lower cost. These are urban truths that shan’t change anytime soon. And this puts our lives at risk.
So then what can you do as an individual to keep safe? Here are some thoughts that come to mind immediately: Keep good relations with your neighbours, even if you don’t like them very much. Store their cell numbers for use in an emergency, and give them your contact details. (This will also be helpful in case of a medical situation.) Few of us bother to make an attempt to be friendly with our neighbours. This is a mistake.
Demand that your building’s security personnel get their names registered at the local police station. If your building society isn’t co-operating in this matter, you can call the cops directly and ensure this gets done. This is also valid for the domestic help and other workers who have access to your house. And if you can afford it, install a security door and/or a CCTV camera outside your entry door.
All the above are obvious suggestions, and yet many of us choose to ignore them. Because of that same old failing of ours: Dude, shit happens to someone else, not me.
However, Pallavi’s death has provided another specific warning. She did not latch her door from the inside. Because this would have barred the entry of her boyfriend, who would often be working later than her. The mistake she made was to carelessly drop her keys on a table located right next to the entry door. It was from here that her killer quietly slipped them out. You have to store the door keys in a safe spot; the best place, to my mind, would be inside your bedroom cupboard.
It is these simple little precautions that can save lives. Do add your own suggestions.
Yes, we all make errors, that’s human. But we must be really stupid if we don’t learn from other people’s costly mistakes.
