The University Grants Commission (UGC) has created the “Guidelines on basic facilities and amenities for safe, secure environment for Women and Women Cell (for sensitization, policy implementation, monitoring, and grievance redressal) in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs)” in order to provide a safe, secure, and violence-free environment for all students, particularly women students. The guidelines can be found on the UGC website, www.ugc.gov.in.
In accordance with the requirements of Section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, all HEIs are required to create internal complaints committees (ICC).
Advisories have been issued from time to time to encourage action in order to raise awareness of the issue of maintaining a safe working environment for female employees in accordance with the Act. To increase the safety of all women, including students and employees, and to offer a safe and secure environment for them on campus in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs).
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued the UGC (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal of Sexual Harassment of Women Employees and Students in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2015, which are statutory in nature and bind universities and colleges. This regulation can be seen on the UGC website, www.ugc.gov.in.
The UGC has established a toll-free number, 1800-111-656, to register complaints about women and sexual harassment.
Gender Sensitization seminars/awareness workshops, etc. are held in HEIs.
The UGC has instructed all universities/colleges to report annual statistics on sexual harassment instances, form an internal complaint committee, and fill out an online Gender Audit compliance form on the SAKSHAM web portal.
Dr. Subhas Sarkar, Minister of State for Education, provided the information in a written reply to the Lok Sabha yesterday.
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