Uttar Pradesh Police Mahila Samman Prakoshth · Programme case study
Ru-ba-ru: Police-student dialogue for gender equality and safer online lives
Ru-ba-ru brought police officers into schools and colleges as people students could question and approach. Girls and boys discussed gender equality, laws affecting women and children, safer use of social media and where to seek help.
- More than 30,000 students reached
- Practical conversations about rights, cyberbullying and help-seeking
- A shared curriculum for delivery by different teams
The challenge
The programme responded to gaps in knowledge about laws affecting women and children and to cyberbullying cases reaching the Mahila Samman Prakoshth. It treated young people as partners in gender equality and community safety, rather than only as an audience for police messaging.
The response
Police officers met school and college students, girls and boys, in direct dialogue. Sessions covered laws related to women, safer use of social media and where students could seek help. An NGO helped use gender-focused learning tools to discuss adolescent concerns. The programme later extended conversations to parents and school staff, with school transport staff linked to Saarthi.
Implementation and learning
A working group with UNICEF, Childline, Prakoshth officers and an NGO representative finalised a basic curriculum for consistent delivery by different teams. The programme sought to build trust by showing students a mentoring role for police, beyond enforcement. Its shared curriculum made the approach easier for different teams to repeat in rural and urban schools.