The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India has issued a comprehensive Advisory on ‘Women’s Safety at Work and Public Spaces’ to ten Union Ministries, the Chairperson of the Railway Board, and all Chief Secretaries of States and Union Territories.
Highlighting that women’s safety is crucial for enabling full workforce participation and ensuring constitutional entitlements to equal opportunity, the NHRC expressed concern over persistent safety gaps.
Recent Periodic Labour Force Participation Survey data showed women’s labour force participation at 34.6%, while the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report documented nearly 4.4 lakh reported cases of crimes against women.
The NHRC Advisory outlines eight critical action areas: expanding awareness on sexual harassment, improving urban and transit infrastructure, encouraging bystander intervention, defining the role of law enforcement, expanding survivor support systems, tackling cybercrime, implementing long-term policy reforms, and establishing institutional safeguards.
Key ministries addressed include Women and Child Development, Home Affairs, Education, Labour and Employment, Road Transport and Highways, Housing and Urban Affairs, Health and Family Welfare, Corporate Affairs, and Information & Broadcasting.
The human rights body has urged all concerned authorities to immediately execute the recommendations and submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) within two months to detail their implementation progress.
