The Centre has informed the Supreme Court of its efforts to urge business associations like the ASSOCHAM and the FICCI to ensure effective implementation of the law to prevent sexual harassment at workplace.
In an affidavit filed before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, the government said the States and the Union Territories were asked to organise workshops and awareness programmes on the law in every industry.
On Friday, the Bench asked the States to file, in two weeks, their replies to a plea for protection of women from sexual harassment at workplace. The petitioner, Initiatives for Inclusion Foundation, represented by advocates Sanjay Parikh and Esha Shekhar, should file the suggestions for ensuring compliance with the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, Redressal) Act, 2013.
“Secretary, Industries/Commerce of the States/UTs, have also been advised to organise workshops and awareness programmes in each and every industry, business house, the private sector,” the affidavit said.
It said an online complaint management system, called the sexual harassment electronic-box (SHe-Box), was developed for registering complaints of sexual harassment at workplace. “SHe-Box is an effort of the government of India to provide a single-window access to every woman, irrespective of her work status, whether working in organised or unorganised, private or public sector, to facilitate registration of complaint of sexual harassment.”
The Centre said that once a complaint was submitted to SHe-Box, it would be directly sent to the authorities concerned for action.
