Indian airline lets women chose seats together for safety
- Women will see pink coins indicating other female travelers
- Rape is the fastest growing crime in India
- The State Department advises women to avoid traveling alone
The State Department is conducting a trial for an online passport renewal system over the next several months, with a certain number of applications accepted each day. (Getty Images)
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(NewsNation) — An Indian airline is letting women see who is in the seats around them and book seats next to other female passengers.
IndiGo, a low-cost airline, launched the feature in May, but it has only recently gotten media attention. The carrier offers more than 2,000 daily flights, and the option is meant to help women travel more safely.
The State Department currently has a travel advisory urging Americans not to travel alone in the country, especially if they are women. The department notes that rape is the fastest-growing crime in India, with sexual assaults occurring at major tourist attractions.
Women flying with IndiGo will see pink coins indicating where other women are seated, allowing them to pick seats away from male travelers.
Female-only travel accommodations may be rare in the U.S., but in India, options like women-only train cars and female-driven cab companies exist to help protect women who are traveling alone, regardless of whether they are tourists or residents.
High-profile cases of rape in India have gained attention, including earlier in the year when a tourist couple said they were attacked and the woman gang-raped while traveling.
The National Crime Records Bureau recorded 31,516 rape cases in 2022, though the actual number is believed to be far higher due to the stigma of sexual assault.
