NGO provides counselling at women police stations

Hyderabad: Volunteers from an NGO, the Society for Women Awareness and Rural Development (SWARD), are providing counselling at women police stations in the city.

Counsellor R. Vasantha said that misunderstandings between couples are leading to court cases and divorces. “As both the husband and wife are financially strong these days, even small disputes lead to divorces,” she said.

“We are counselling around 250 families a month in the city and in around 50 per cent of the cases both the husband and wife are highly educated. Around 50 per cent of the cases are connected to love marriages.

Based on the importance of the case we conduct two to four sessions of counselling for the couple and relatives. We give priority to women and if she wants to register a case after counselling we recommend that to the police,” she said.

She said that 65 per cent of the couples compromise after counselling sessions by SWARD representatives. “In the remaining cases about 20 per cent of the women ask for maintenance under the Domestic Violence Act. As per their request we take the initiative to provide protection, shelter and maintenance by husbands. The remaining 15 per cent lead to cases under various Acts,” she said.