New Delhi: A vacant pink booth meant to act as a helpdesk for women, a belated vehicle inspection drive by the Uttar Pradesh police in Greater Noida as cars with black tint shade on windows were being waylaid, and an unmanned police post due to the vehicle inspection deployment – these were some of the glaring loopholes related to women’s safety noticed by The Wire reporters during their ground reporting within 100 metres of the Pari Chowk bus stop on September 1, 2026, the spot from where the minor victim in the Greater Noida gang rape case had boarded the bus on August 4.“Since morning, I have taken action against six-seven vehicles. We conduct such checking drives every day for vehicles with black film [on windows],” Jeet Ram Singh from the traffic police, who was on-duty on September 1, told The Wire. When asked whether the vehicle involved in the August incident also went through similar checks since news reports suggested that the accused driver and conductor drove the bus with curtains covering the windows for 47 km from Pari Chowk in Greater Noida to Kashmere Gate in Delhi, Jeet Ram Singh said: “I do not have any information about that, you can talk to those at the chowki [police post] for that.”While confirming that a typical roster for police officers deployed on traffic duty comprises a twelve-hour time slot from 8 am to 8 pm, Singh further added, “My only duty is to issue a challan for vehicles with black films while I even try and remove it from some cars on my own.” He refused to comment when asked whether any such personnel from the traffic police department were deployed during late evening hours, specifically 11.30 pm, when the victim had boarded the bus that day.Unmanned police chowkiAround a dozen police personnel from the Beta-2 Pari Chowk Police Chowki which comes under the jurisdiction of Greater Noida police commissionerate were deployed at the Pari Chowk bus stop as vehicle inspection drive was underway. At least three cars were stopped in front of The Wire’s reporters as policemen resorted to removing the black plastic film stuck on the windows of the car, including black mesh used for protection from sun rays from the back of the vehicle forcefully. Police personnel at Greater Noida. Photo: The Wire.In 2012, the Supreme Court had ordered for a complete ban on use of black films on windscreens and other glass panels of vehicles. In 2018, the Delhi high court had refused to grant permission for usage of solar control black films or tinted glasses in cars despite the petitioner pleading on grounds of health-related concerns. At the Pari Chowk bus stop that day, personnel from the Uttar Pradesh Police refused to comment when asked whether such inspection drives for tinted glasses were carried out regularly. However, one police official who was present at the spot and didn’t want to be identified said, “We hardly get time for this.”On the other side of the Beta-2 police chowki, another police post – Ansal Plaza Chowki – near Pari Chowk metro station wore a deserted look. The Ansal Plaza Police Chowki comes under the jurisdiction of the Knowledge Park police station in Greater Noida. Also read: Allahabad HC Questions ‘Unnecessary Resistance’ by UP Govt to Relocating Family of Hathras VictimWith no police personnel present at the chowki and the office of the Station House Officer (SHO) also locked, when The Wire reporters called on the official number of Chowki Prabhari, Sub Inspector Amarpal Singh, he said: “We are here on the road for checking [vehicles].” When asked whether a few police personnel should be present at the chowki itself, Singh responded by saying, “Police personnel are present at all hours of the day at the police station. This is a chowki [police post].”Vacant Pink BoothIn October 2020, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath kickstarted the ‘Mission Shakti’ programme aimed at raising awareness and improving women security. According to a report in New Indian Express, in October 2023, the Uttar Pradesh government had cleared the proposal for construction of pink booths [booths with women police personnel] across the state in three phases. A pink booth at Greater Noida. Photo: Akanksha Kumar.Apart from these initiatives, the Adityanath government has also resorted to eliminating criminals through encounters carried out by the Uttar Pradesh Police since 2017. While addressing a public meeting in Sant Kabir Nagar district on August 11, 2026, Uttar Pradesh chief minister said, “No one can molest a woman walking down the road, similarly a businessman can also no longer be subjected to pressure because they [criminals] know that the result will either be jail or journey to jahannum (Urdu word for hell).”Yet, less than a month after a minor girl was gangraped on board a bus between Greater Noida and Delhi, the incident being a grim reminder of the 2012 Nirbhaya case, little seems to have changed in Noida, a city often projected as a fast growing industrial town of Uttar Pradesh.At the Pink Booth near Pari Chowk bus stop, at around 5.30 pm two women constables left for VIP duty leaving the women’s help desk vacant despite the fact that duty hours at Pink Booths are from 8 am to 8 pm and these booths require the mandatory presence of a lady constable and a lady sub inspector. The women police personnel at the Pink Booth refused to respond to The Wire’s queries with one of them even telling these reporters to delete their footage recorded from outside.A board on Mission Shakti with numbers and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath’s photo. Photo: Akanksha Kumar.A board mounted on the outer side of the Pink Booth announced the main objectives of the ‘Mission Shakti’ programme – women security, women dignity and women self-reliance alongside a photo of Uttar Pradesh chief minister on the top. A tabular chart underneath displayed women helpline numbers which according to a daily commuter, The Wire spoke with, don’t come in handy when needed. Speaking to The Wire, Chandni Rohilla who takes a bus from Pari Chowk daily said, “There are buses which don’t halt at a particular stop. I tried complaining on the government portal and by calling on respective numbers as well but didn’t get any response.”When asked about what she thought about law and order in Uttar Pradesh under the current chief minister, Rohilla said, “We can see some preventive measures being taken but security [measures] need to be strengthened. Today you are seeing policemen around after an incident has taken place. Just displaying numbers is not enough, somebody needs to pick up those nos. as well.”