The Ministry of Women and Child Development has been very proactive, taking several measures to ensure that crime against women is reduced. It has taken the following measures till now:
- Larger funds allotted: On Dec 21, 2017, the Press Information Bureau released a statement that a fresh amount had been allocated under the Nirbhaya Fund. The government of India set up a dedicated fund called the “Nirbhaya Fund” in 2013 for the implementation of initiatives aimed at enhancing the safety and security of women in the country. It is a non-lapsable corpus fund.
- One Stop Centers created: As per a Press Information Bureau report, on Dec 15, 2017, the Minister of Women and Child Development, Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, inaugurated the two-day national workshop on the role of Sakhi one-stop centers in strengthening multi-sectoral responses to violence in New Delhi. The workshop was organized by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. Around 400 Sakhi-One Stop Center functionaries and nodal officials from the State Department of Women and Child Development from 33 states and UTs across the country are participating in the two-day workshop.
- Maneka Sanjay Gandhi wrote to film producers to comply with Sexual Harassment Act: On December 13, 2017, Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi personally wrote to production houses to ensure that the film industry also complies with the law against sexual harassment. She wrote to Aditya Chopra, Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap, Bhushan Kumar, Ekta Kapoor, Vinod Chopra, Mahesh Bhatt, Shahrukh Khan, Sooraj Barjatya Bhavana, Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani, Ajit Andhare, Sajid Nadiadwala, Vijay Singh, NP Singh, Aamir Khan, Shobu Yarlagadda, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Ashutosh Gowarikar, Manish Mundra, Pritish Nandy, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and Subhash Ghai in this regard.
- The Ministry of Women and Child Development launched a portal to receive sexual harassment complaints. In November 2017, the Ministry launched an online portal called http://www.shebox.nic.in/ so that women facing incidents can file complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace directly with the Ministry. The complaints can be filed by women working in private as well as public sector organizations, and the Ministry shall forward the complaint to the internal committee of such organizations. Hence, in the event that a company does not have an internal committee, the female employee can reach out to the Ministry, and the Ministry shall be directly in a position to even penalize the company for not complying with the law. Below is a screenshot of the portal:
- The Ministry of Women and Child Development empowered organizations across India to conduct training and awareness sessions on the Sexual Harassment Act. In February 2017, the Ministry empowered 29 organizations to conduct training and awareness sessions on the law against sexual harassment at the workplace. POSH at Work was one such organization and the only one in the State of Maharashtra and Goa. In November 2017, the Ministry updated this list and included several other organizations so that further awareness about the law could be created. Naturally, with growing awareness, the number of complaints will also rise. This list is also available on the ministry’s portal. Below is a screenshot of the same:
- Companies Act amended to include disclosure on sexual harassment: The Ministry of Corporate Affairs, on July 31, 2018, amended the Companies (Accounts) Rules, 2014 It provides that companies shall now have to mandatorily provide “a statement that the company has complied with provisions relating to the constitution of the Internal Complaints Committee under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013.” This will be in addition to the Annual Report that companies have to file as per the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 with the District Officer. Non-compliance with the reporting requirements under S134 of the Companies Act, 2013 could lead to the imposition of a fine on the company, which is not less than Rs. 50,000 but may extend to Rs. 25 lakhs, and the imprisonment of every officer of the company for a term that may extend to 3 years, or a fine in the range of Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 5 lakhs. Click here for a copy of the notification