Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday, 17 August announced plans to establish digital libraries in every panchayat of the Kota-Bundi region, aiming to give girls in remote and rural areas equal access to quality educational resources and competitive-examination preparation. The announcement came during Suraksha Samvad 2.0, a women's safety dialogue organised by Kota City Police and the Blue Dot Dialogue organisation in Kota, Rajasthan.

Digital Libraries for Rural Girls

Birla said the proposed libraries would provide study material sourced from national and international repositories, supplemented by online coaching and digital education platforms to help rural students prepare more effectively. He also highlighted ongoing digital literacy drives, including the Dadi-Nani Ki Digital Pathshala (Grandmothers' Digital School) initiative, which aims to introduce digital education to children from an early age.

'The objective is to ensure that no girl's education or talent is held back because of a lack of resources,' Birla said, underscoring that daughters in remote areas deserve the same opportunities as those in cities.

Women's Safety: A Collective Responsibility

Addressing women and female students at the event, Birla stressed that women's safety is not the sole responsibility of the police or the government but a collective responsibility of society. He said stronger communication between the police and the community, combined with the active participation of women, can help prevent and effectively combat crime.

Birla released a documentary on the women's safety campaign and a handbook on cyber and women's safety during the programme. He urged women to stay alert about cybercrime, noting that Kota — a major educational hub attracting students from across India — must offer a safe, welcoming and family-like environment to all incoming students.

What Officials Said

Rajasthan Director General of Police Rajiv Kumar Sharma said that under the guidance of Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, the Rajasthan Police is fully committed to ensuring women's safety. He urged women to approach the police without hesitation whenever they face trouble or become victims of crime, and stressed the importance of girls knowing their legal rights and understanding digital crimes.

Energy Minister Hiralal Nagar called for greater awareness and dialogue on women's safety, urging women not to ignore any form of harassment, abuse or uncomfortable situation and to report such incidents immediately. Kota South MLA Sandeep Sharma emphasised the importance of self-defence training for female students, arguing that preventing a crime is far more important than responding after it has occurred.

Ladpura MLA Kalpana Devi broadened the conversation, noting that women's safety extends beyond streets and public spaces to workplaces, homes, and the digital sphere, including cybercrime and digital blackmail. She stressed that alongside educating daughters, it is equally important to teach sons to respect women.

Key Attendees

The event was attended by Additional DGP Vishal Bansal, Deputy Inspector General of Police Kunwar Rashtradeep, District Collector Piyush Samariya, Kota City Superintendent of Police Tejaswini Gautam, and Kota Rural SP Sujit Shankar, along with other police and administrative officials.

With digital library infrastructure now pledged for every panchayat in the Kota-Bundi belt, the initiative's implementation timeline and funding details will be closely watched by educators and local administrators in the region.