Beyond the Call of Duty: An OSC Story of Care and Courage

-  Shobha Shelar (DWCD), Nikhat Shaikh, and Aastha Dalal 

“When life left her with nowhere to turn, compassion and care became her lifeline.”

Across India, One Stop Centres (OSCs) serve as vital lifelines for women facing violence. Established under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, OSCs provide integrated support under one roof, including temporary shelter, medical care, counselling, police facilitation, and legal aid. For many women in distress, an OSC is the first safe space where they are heard, protected, and guided toward recovery.

In Mumbai, this vision takes shape through a unique partnership between the Department of Women and Child Development (DWCD), K.E.M. Hospital, and SNEHA (Society for Nutrition, Education, and Health Action), a non-profit with decades of experience addressing gender-based violence, maternal and child health, and community well-being. SNEHA serves as the support agency for the Mumbai city OSC, ensuring that survivors not only receive immediate crisis intervention but also sustained holistic care. Together, this partnership weaves a safety net that extends beyond emergency response, it nurtures healing, dignity, and empowerment.

This is the story of one such woman and how the OSC team went far beyond the call of duty to protect her and her children. This story reflects the OSC–SNEHA collaboration in creating pathways of safety and recovery for women and children in crisis, showcasing what true survivor-centric care looks like in practice.

A Journey of Struggle and Survival

In mid-2025, a 25-year-old woman and her 4.5-year-old daughter arrived at the OSC. Her life was marked by hardships: Orphaned young, this woman was married off underage by her brother and was subjected to years of abuse from her husband’s family in Jharkhand. Her husband, working in Mumbai’s informal sector, remained distant, leaving her isolated in her struggles. Years of violence and neglect led to stress and trauma, and drove her to three suicide attempts.

In 2023, she fled and survived at Patna railway station, working odd jobs. A man coerced her into a relationship for two years, during which she became pregnant. When she filed a police complaint, he lured her to Delhi and abandoned her at the railway station - eight months pregnant and with her daughter.

With little support, she eventually made her way to Mumbai. At Dadar Railway Station, the Police referred her to the OSC, where her journey of care and protection began.

Intervention and Care at OSC

The OSC team welcomed her into the shelter, offering the first thing she needed: safety.

“When she arrived, she was frightened, confused, and carrying enormous trauma,” recalls one counsellor. “The first step was simply to listen, to help her feel she was not alone anymore.”

Through counselling, she gradually shared her experiences, including multiple non-consensual relationships. The OSC responded with a coordinated, multi-layered intervention:

• Medical care: Facilitated prenatal treatment at KEM Hospital.
• Legal support: An FIR has been filed against the man who had abused and abandoned her.
• Counselling and options: Discussed her choices for the future, including adoption.

The OSC team facilitated the survivor’s transfer to a specialised centre for pregnant women. Her daughter's custody was given to her father. Initially, she decided to give her unborn child up for adoption. But after delivering a baby boy, her mental health deteriorated, and she refused to give up her newborn. Her husband also refused to return their daughter, citing health and schooling concerns. Torn between her children and struggling with suicidal thoughts, she turned once again to the OSC.

The team coordinated psychiatric treatment, temporary separation of the infant for safety, and multiple stakeholder interventions, including the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), shelters, and adoption centres.

“That night, we knew she could not be left alone,” recalls the OSC counsellor. “It was exhausting, but ensuring her safety mattered more than anything else.”

Navigating Crisis with Persistence

The OSC counsellors recognised the crisis and immediately arranged psychiatric care at KEM Hospital and presented the case to the CWC. The survivor and her baby were moved to another long-term stay centre. The OSC team did not halt their intervention at this point; they followed up on the well-being of the survivor and her baby. 

When the baby’s health worsened after a brief stay in the other shelter, the counsellor urgently intervened with the CWC, ensuring that the infant was placed at an adoption centre for proper care. Meanwhile, the survivor’s mental health required intensive psychiatric support.

The OSC counsellor then sought the opinion of the doctor who treated her in the suburban hospital where she had delivered her child and coordinated across agencies, returning to the Dadar Railway Police who had first referred the case, securing permissions, and personally escorting the survivor late at night to a foundation outside Mumbai that could provide her with the intensive psychiatric support she needed. She was admitted, and the counsellor returned to the OSC at 4 a.m., after nearly 18 hours of continuous work. Throughout, the OSC kept every stakeholder - CWC, police, hospital, foundation, and adoption centre informed, ensuring all actions were transparent and coordinated.

Outcome

Today, the survivor is receiving treatment at the foundation and is showing signs of recovery. Her daughter is with her father, while her newborn son is safely cared for at an adoption centre. The OSC continues to monitor the case, advocating for her well-being and ensuring her children are protected.

“For the first time, I feel someone is standing with me, not against me,” she shared during a calmer moment.

This case demonstrates how quick, coordinated, survivor-centric interventions can save lives and restore hope.

The OSC Collaboration

This work is possible only because of the partnership between the Government and civil society. Together, this partnership ensures that survivors not only find immediate relief, shelter, and crisis response, but also long-term holistic support across health, legal, and psychosocial needs. While DWCD ensures policy and administrative support, K.E.M. Hospital provides medical and psychological services, and SNEHA bridges these systems through case management, follow-ups, and community reintegration. 

What makes the Mumbai OSC truly exceptional is the collaborative spirit that drives it. Government institutions, healthcare providers, and non-profit professionals come together, united by a shared goal of ensuring survivor-centric care.

Reflection

This story emphasizes that survivors of violence need more than just laws; they require compassionate and responsive support systems. The OSC team demonstrated this commitment by ensuring that the survivor received timely and comprehensive support. The OSC–SNEHA partnership in Mumbai demonstrates what is possible when institutions work together with empathy and purpose. It represents a robust model of care, one that guarantees dignity, belief, and continuity of support for every woman in need. More than a service model, the OSC–SNEHA partnership in Mumbai stands as a living example of institutional synergy that upholds dignity, safety, and empowerment.

*Shobha Shelar, District Women and Child Development Officer, BMC. Nikhat Sheikh, Program Director, Strategy & Implementation, Prevention of Violence Against Women & Children Program, SNEHA and Aastha Dalal, Consultant Documentation Coordinator, SNEHA