Urbanization, Security, and Social Media Networks

In the past few decades, an integral part of the processes of rapid urbanization has been the equally rapid technologization of spaces. With the internet and related technology increasingly becoming a part of the everyday lives of people, particularly in cities, the digital space becomes an extension of the urban. Social media networks, WhatsApp groups, pictures, and videos on the web – in short, ‘being online’ – become an important part of how people live in cities, which is further helped by cheaper smartphones and data rates. Particularly in cities like Gurgaon, dotted with high rises, malls, offices of information technology (IT) companies, multinational corporations (MNC) and transnational corporations (TNC) with branches all across the world connected through the internet, digital tools and technologies become a part of urban living. For women, this online world and its tools can cut both ways. Smartphones equipped with various kinds of mobile applications (apps), software, and social networking sites can be both a boon and a bane. On the one hand, social media sites help many women find others similarly placed and provide platforms to make friends, voice concerns, and share joys and sorrows. The digital platforms become spaces to express and discuss opinions, find networks and friendships, share lives, and, in many ways, navigate ways of living in the city. For many, the tracking and mapping made possible through geo-locators and GPS-enabled apps provide a sense of security and ease of movement through the city. On the other hand, as an extension of the cultural and social realities of the physical world, the internet can and does echo or even increase the gender divide, gender-related issues, and gendered violence.