Updated October 24th, 2018 at 17:13 IST
Government forms GoM to examine legal and institutional frameworks dealing with sexual harassment of women at workplace
The Government on Wednesday constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM), which will be headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, to examine the existing legal and institutional frameworks for dealing with matters of sexual harassment of women at the workplace.
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Update at 5:11 pm: I am grateful to the Prime Minister and Home Minister for agreeing to organize a Group of Ministers (GOM) in which there will be 2 male&2 female ministers who will look into all the aspects of what is necessary to give security to our women at workplace: Union Minister Maneka Gandhi
Update at 5:11 pm: We are trying to find ways to deal with issues women face in their workplace. For instance, making it limitless in terms of time for when you can complain and strengthen the National Commission for Women and institutions that can look after these types of complaints: Union Minister Maneka Gandhi
The Government on Wednesday constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM), which will be headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, to examine the existing legal and institutional frameworks for dealing with matters of sexual harassment of women at the workplace. The GoM will recommend action required for effective implementation of the existing provisions, as well as for strengthening the existing legal and institutional frameworks for addressing issues related to sexual harassment at workplace.
The Group of Ministers has been constituted in view of the felt need for broader consultation on this issue, from the point of view of developing appropriate recommendations and laying down a comprehensive plan of action and for ensuring its time-bound implementation.
The Group of Ministers will be chaired by Shri Rajnath Singh, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Its Members are:
a) Nitin Gadkari, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, and Ministry of Shipping.
b) Nirmala Sitharaman, Ministry of Defence.
c) Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Ministry of Women & Child Development
Read: Producers Guild Of India Releases Statement Post Meeting On Sexual Harassment At Workplace
The Government is committed to ensure the safety and dignity of women in the workforce. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act is the key legislation for preventing and protecting women against sexual harassment in the workplace and to ensure effective redressal of complaints of sexual harassment.
The Ministry of Women & Child Development has also launched an Electronic Complaints Box that enables women, irrespective of their work status, to raise their voice against sexual harassment at workplace. Once a complaint is submitted to the ‘SHe-Box’, it is directly sent to the concerned authority having jurisdiction to take action into the matter. A mechanism will be put in place to regularly monitor the action taken on the complaints.
The Group of Ministers will, within 3 months of its constitution, examine the existing provisions for the safety of women, including those mentioned above, and recommend further measures required to strengthen and make them more effective.
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Published October 24th, 2018 at 16:08 IST
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