News18 She Shakti Suraksha Survey 2025: 3 Indian cities where women feel the safest

Women in India find Ahmedabad, Indore and Mumbai as the top three safest cities in the country. The cities were picked by the women who took part in the She Shakti Suraksha Survey 2025, which was conducted by CNN-News18 in partnership with Pvalue.

The survey, released on the eve of International Women’s Day (March 8), reveals that 82 per cent of urban women across 20 Indian cities perceive their own cities as safe environments, while only 6 per cent consider their urban settings unsafe. The remaining 12 per cent surveyed have moderate feelings towards their cities.

Interestingly, the survey highlights a sharp contrast in safety perceptions between daytime and night-time hours. While 82 per cent of the responders feel safe during daylight hours, this figure drops dramatically to just 48 per cent after dark.

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Meanwhile, nearly a quarter of respondents, i.e. 23 per cent, consider their cities unsafe at night, with 29 per cent reporting moderate safety levels. “This day-night disparity represents a critical insight for urban planners and policymakers," the survey noted. The polls suggested that “interventions targeted specifically at improving night-time safety could significantly enhance women’s overall security experiences."

The aim of the She Shakti Suraksha Survey 2025 is to quantify women’s safety perceptions across various parameters and identify areas for improvement. Despite legal frameworks that are in place in the country, safety concerns continue to affect women’s education, mobility, economic participation, and overall citizenship rights, forcing them to modify their behaviours and limiting their participation in public life.

In the first year of polling, the survey covered 20 cities with plans to expand to 100 in the future. The top three cities which were seen safest among the women were Ahmedabad, Indore and Maharashtra, respectively. The data was collected through Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) using random sampling of 8,000 women, conducted in 10 different Indian languages.

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The sample of the survey was representative of the variables, including age, education level, marital status, and household monthly income, enabling a sophisticated, intersectional analysis of safety perceptions.