Ahmedabad: In Feb, a woman from a western city area called the Abhayam 181 women’s helpline seeking intervention as she found herself in hot soup. The woman confessed she abandoned her husband of 5 years for her boyfriend, whom she met on a social media platform. Believing that the boyfriend would marry her, she ran away from her marital home to be with him, only to realise after 2 months that it was an empty promise.“The woman wanted to end her life, but she was counselled and was asked to reconsider her choices. She is attempting a reconciliation with her estranged husband,” said a counsellor.For the past 3 years, the helpline fielded over 10,000 distress calls related to extramarital issues. In fact, the volume of calls for the category saw a five-fold rise from 2,190 in 2016 to 10,428 in 2025.It is notable that on March 8 – International Women’s Day – the helpline, funded by the state govt and run by EMRI, completed 12 years of operations. EMRI officials said that the rise could be seen from the point of view of the dual factors of increased awareness and expansion of services.“In 2015, we received only 812 calls under the category, which jumped to over 2,000 in a matter of 1 year (in 2016). Since 2023, the category accounts for about 5% of total call volume, at over 10,000 calls, which is received not only from major cities but also from other parts of the state,” said a senior EMRI official.Satish Kadia, coordinator for Abhayam in Ahmedabad district, said that analysis of 2025 indicates that about 2-thirds of the cases (68%) across categories are resolved through counselling or a spot visit, whereas in 26% of instances the cases are referred to other agencies such as police or social justice. In the remaining 6% of cases, the calls are found to be hoax, inconclusive, or test calls.Started in March 2014, the helpline received the highest calls in 2023 at 2.18 lakh calls. In 2025, the volume decreased slightly to 1.98 lakh, or 22 calls every hour. Cumulatively, the helpline – envisaged as the first line of defence for crime against women – clocked over 18 lakh calls in 12 years.Analysis of the categories of calls indicates that the share of domestic violence calls was about 32% at 36,000 calls, or 1-third of total distress calls, in 2016, which increased to 46% at 90,000 in 2025. During the Covid years, the share of domestic violence calls touched 49% and 48% in 2020 and 2021, respectively.Some other categories with a significant rise from 2016 to 2025 were harassment, torture and abuse (5% to 15% share in calls), extramarital issues (2% to 5%), and legal issues (2% to 4%), among others. Abhayam coordinators also pointed to interpersonal issues between women and in-laws, and women and children, as a category that saw a rise in recent years, especially due to excessive screen time or issues related to lifestyle.Jharna Pathak, secretary of Ahmedabad Women Action Group (AWAG), said that at their counselling centres, domestic violence, other abuse, and extramarital issues often form the bulk of the total cases. “I believe the rise should be seen in the form of a vent, and also a message to the system that women-related issues should be taken more seriously by police agencies for long-term resolution,” she said.
