PM's Vision Of Women-Led Development Central To Workplace Safety, Says Union Minister Annpurna Devi At POSH Event

Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Annpurna Devi, on Friday said that strengthening workplace safety is fundamental to increasing women's participation in the workforce and achieving inclusive national development, as she inaugurated a two-day National Awareness Programme on the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.

The programme, organised by the National Commission for Women (NCW), was attended by senior government officials, legal experts, representatives of Internal and Local Committees, and civil society organisations, all brought together to strengthen awareness and implementation of the POSH Act across workplaces.

Addressing the gathering as Chief Guest, the Minister said ensuring safe, dignified and inclusive workplaces was essential to realising the vision of women-led development. Every woman, she said, has the right to work with dignity and without fear, and building that safe environment is a shared responsibility of governments, employers and institutions alike.

The Minister noted that the evolving nature of work, including hybrid models, virtual meetings and the gig economy, has introduced new challenges that call for continuous strengthening of institutional responses. She stressed that fair inquiry procedures, protection of privacy, and adherence to the principles of natural justice must be upheld even as timely disposal of complaints is ensured.

She pointed to data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey showing that women's workforce participation had risen sharply, from 23.3 percent in 2017-18 to 41.7 percent in 2023-24, and said this made workplace safety a matter of urgent national importance rather than mere statutory compliance.

She also underlined the growing role of the SHe-Box portal, which she described as a key digital platform enabling time-bound resolution of complaints and reflecting the government's commitment to building a robust institutional ecosystem for women's safety, one that brings Internal Committees across the country onto a single, trackable system.

Calling upon employers and institutional leadership to show greater accountability, the Minister said every organisation must foster a workplace culture built on dignity, sensitivity and zero tolerance towards sexual harassment.

She urged members of Internal and Local Committees to conduct inquiries with fairness, confidentiality and empathy, while strictly adhering to the statutory timelines prescribed under the Act, adding that "every complaint coming to you is not just a file, but represents a woman's trust, her self-respect, and her hope for justice."

The Minister also invoked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision, saying the country was moving forward with a firm commitment to women-led development, and that strengthening the potential of India's women makes the resolution of a developed India certain. India's legal framework, she said, has often stayed ahead of global discourse, noting that the Vishakha Guidelines were adopted as early as 1997, well before the International Labour Organisation formalised similar protections through Convention 190 in 2019.

On the occasion, the Union Minister released the Booklet on Inquiry Procedures for Internal Committees (ICs) and Local Committees (LCs) under the POSH Act, prepared by the NCW. The booklet is intended to serve as a practical guide for conducting fair, transparent and time-bound inquiries under the Act. 

The programme also featured technical session by Sanya Talwar, Founding Editor, LawBeat on key provisions of the POSH Act, including the rights of complainants and respondents.

The two-day programme is expected to conclude with further deliberations on institutional preparedness, grievance redressal mechanisms, and measures to strengthen compliance with the POSH Act across government and private workplaces nationwide.

Event Name: Awareness Program On POSH Act, 2013

Event Date: July 17, 2026