The National Annual Report and Index on Women's Safety (NARI) 2025 has recently been released, presenting a data-driven assessment of women's safety across 31 cities in India. The report, based on a survey of 12,770 women, seeks to capture the "dark figure" of unreported harassment and the daily experiences of women, going beyond official crime statistics.
Key Findings
The NARI 2025 report reveals that 40% of women in urban areas feel "not so safe" or "unsafe". The nationwide safety score is 65%, and cities are categorized as "much above," "above," "at," "below," or "much below" this benchmark. Safety concerns notably increase at night due to inadequate street lighting and a lack of visible security measures. The report highlights widespread harassment faced by women in public spaces, including staring, catcalling, lewd remarks, and physical contact. These incidents have had a severe impact, with many female students dropping out of school and working women quitting their jobs for safety reasons. Seven percent of women reported experiencing harassment in 2024, with those aged 18-24 at the highest risk. This is significantly higher than the 0.07% of cases of crime against women reported in the NCRB 2022 statistics. Only 22% of the women surveyed reported their experiences to authorities, and action was taken in just 16% of those cases. A significant 53% of the women were unsure if their workplace has a Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) policy, which is mandated by law.
Safest and Least Safe Cities
The NARI 2025 report identifies the following cities as the safest for women in India: Mumbai, Kohima, Visakhapatnam, Bhubaneswar, Aizawl, Gangtok, and Itanagar. These cities often correlate with higher gender equity, better infrastructure, stronger policing, and greater civic participation. In contrast, the report ranks the following cities as the least safe for women: Kolkata, Delhi, Ranchi, Srinagar, Faridabad, Patna, and Jaipur. These cities are associated with poorer infrastructure, patriarchal norms, and weaker institutional responsiveness.
Underlying Issues
The report stresses that official crime data alone cannot reflect women's lived reality. Two out of three women do not report harassment, meaning the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) misses the bulk of incidents. Women fear further harassment or social stigma. Women perceive public spaces as unsafe due to inadequate infrastructure, poor lighting, and inefficient public transport. Societal attitudes that often blame victims for harassment further exacerbate the problem.
Recommendations and Implications
The NARI 2025 report emphasizes that women's safety is not just a law-and-order matter but affects every aspect of a woman's life, including education, health, jobs, mobility, and digital presence. Physical, psychological, financial, and online security all play a role. The report calls for the integration of crime data with perception-based surveys like NARI. It also highlights the need to strengthen protections against cybercrime, economic discrimination, and mental harassment. National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar stressed that a safe environment is crucial for building a developed and inclusive India. She praised measures like women helplines, CCTV networks, and the rise of women police officers and bus drivers as confidence-builders but warned that institutional fixes are not enough.
