ANNUAL REPORT 2020-21 MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT Government of India CONTENTS Chapter Title Page No. Chapter 1. Introduction 1-4 Chapter 2. Women Empowerment and Protection 5-24 Chapter 3. Child Development 25-46 Chapter 4. Child Protection and Welfare 47-60 Chapter 5. Gender Budgeting 61-66 Chapter 6. Plan, Statistics and Research 67-74 National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Chapter 7. 75-82 Development Chapter 8. National Commission for Women 83-92 Chapter 9. National Commission for Protection of Child Rights 93-102 Chapter 10. Central Adoption Resource Authority 103-112 Chapter 11. Other Agencies Programme and Activities 113-128 Annexures 129-182 1 Introduction Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Women and children together constitute policies and programmes, mainstreaming gender about 67.7% of the country’s population, as concerns, creating awareness about their rights per 2011 Census. Empowerment and protection and facilitating institutional and legislative of women and children, and ensuring their support for enabling them to realize their human wholesome development is crucial for sustainable rights and develop to their full potential. and equitable development of the country. The Ministry of Women and Child Development III. Mission – Safe and Secure is the apex body of Government of India for Childhood formulation and administration of regulations 1.4 Ensuring development, care and and laws related to welfare and development protection of children through cross-cutting of women and children in the country. It came policies and programmes, spreading awareness into existence as a separate Ministry with effect about their rights and facilitating access to from 30th January, 2006; earlier, it was the learning, nutrition, institutional and legislative Department of Women and Child Development support for enabling them to grow and develop set up in the year 1985 under the Ministry of to their full potential. Human Resource Development. The Ministry was constituted with the prime intention to IV. Constitutional and Legal Provisions address gaps in State action for women and children and for promoting inter-ministerial 1.5 The concern of the makers of our and inter-sectoral convergence to create gender Constitution for equality of women, on one equitable and child centered legislation, policies side and for assuring the rights of children, and programmes. promoting their well-being and ensuring a better future for them on the other, are enshrined in I. Vision constitutional provisions. These provisions are listed at Annexure-I. For furthering the interests 1.2 Empowered women living with dignity of the women and the children of the country, and contributing as equal partners in development the Government has also enacted a number of in an environment free from violence and laws which are listed at Annexure-II. discrimination; and, well-nurtured children with full opportunities for growth and development V. Subjects allocated to the Ministry in a safe and protective environment. of Women and Child Development II. Mission – Empowerment of Women 1.6 The Ministry has evolved policies, plans of action, legislations, programmes and schemes 1.3 Promoting social and economic for advancement of women and children and empowerment of women through cross-cutting has been implementing them with the support of 3 Annual Report 2020-21 State Governments/UTs, Government and Non- (NIPCCD), Central Social Welfare Board Government Organisations for achieving its (CSWB), and Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) mandate. The subjects allocated to the Ministry working under its aegis; besides three Statutory are listed at Annexure III. Bodies namely— National Commission for Women (NCW) and National Commission 1.7 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and have taken the center stage in defining the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA). developmental priorities. Women empowerment NIPCCD and RMK are societies registered under is widely recognised as the precondition for the Societies Registration Act, 1860. CSWB is achieving the several targets of the SDGs like a charitable company registered under section poverty eradication, inequality, good health, 25 of the Indian Companies Act, 1956. These decent work and economic growth. Wellbeing organisations are funded by the Government of of women and children is essential for realisation India and they assist the Ministry in its functions of demographic dividend of the country. The including implementation of programmes/ Schemes and initiatives of the Ministry of schemes. The Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) Women and Child Development are aligned is an attached office of the Ministry. with the Targets of SDGs and are directly linked to the social safety net for development and 1.10 The National Commission for Women welfare of women and children in the country. (NCW) is a National apex statutory body set up in 1992 for protecting and safeguarding VI. Organisational Structure of the the rights of women. National Commission Ministry for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was th 1.8 The Ministry of Women and Child set up on 5 March, 2007 as envisaged in the Development is headed by the Cabinet Minister Commission for Protection of Child Rights Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani and the Minister of State Act, 2005. CARA is the Central Authority Sushri Debasree Chaudhuri. Shri Ram Mohan that functions as a nodal body for promoting Mishra took over the charge of Secretary of and regulating adoption of Indian children at the Ministry on 29th July, 2020, who is assisted the National level, as per the provisions under by one Special Secretary & Financial Advisor Section 68 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and (SS&FA) and one Additional Secretary, five Protection of Children) Act, 2015. Joint Secretaries, one Economic Adviser and VIII. Achievements of the Ministry one Statistical Adviser. Organisational chart of during 2020-21 the Ministry is at Annexure-IV. 1.11 During the year 2020-21 Ministry has VII. Organisations under the aegis of undertaken various policy initiatives and plan the Ministry interventions for the development, welfare 1.9 The Ministry has three Autonomous and protection of women and children. These Organisations viz. National Institute of interventions and Ministry’s major achievements Public Cooperation and Child Development during the year are discussed in the succeeding chapters. 4 2 Women Empowerment and Protection Chapter 2 Women Empowerment and Protection I. INTRODUCTION A. Sexual Harassment at Workplace 2.1 The principle of gender equality is 2.4 The Sexual Harassment of Women enshrined in the Indian Constitution. The at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Constitution not only grants equality to women, Redressal) Act, 2013 was enacted to ensure but also empowers the State to adopt measures safe working spaces for women and to build of positive discrimination in favour of women an enabling environment that respects women’s to neutralise the cumulative socio-economic and right of equality of status and opportunity. The political disadvantages faced by them. Women Act covers all women, irrespective of their age have fundamental rights to not be discriminated or employment status and protects them against on the grounds of sex and get equal protection sexual harassment at all workplaces whether under the law. It also imposes a fundamental organised or unorganised. Students, apprentices, duty on every citizen to renounce the practices laborers, domestic workers and even women derogatory to the dignity of women. visiting an office or a workplace are included in the Act. 2.2 Empowerment of women is a process that leads women to claim their rights to have 2.5 In order to ensure effective access to equal opportunities in economic, implementation of the Act, the Ministry has cultural, social and political spheres of life and developed an online complaint management realise their full potential. This progress has to system titled Sexual Harassment electronic–Box be accompanied by their freedom in decision (SHe-Box), which provides an online platform making both within and outside their home with to every woman, irrespective of her work status, the ability to influence the direction of social whether working in organised or unorganised, change. The Ministry has taken a number of private or public sector for registration of initiatives to empower women and to ensure complaints related to sexual harassment at their safety; these are detailed below. workplace. Those who have already filed a written complaint with the concerned Internal II. LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK Committee (IC) or Local Committee (LC) FOR WOMEN constituted under the Sexual Harassment of 2.3 On the legal front, the Ministry has been Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition active in ensuring the protection of law to the and Redressal) Act, 2013 are also eligible to file most vulnerable women. Work is being carried their complaint through this portal. This portal is out to ensure optimum implementation of laws an effort to provide speedier remedy to women for women. facing sexual harassment at workplace. Once a complaint is submitted to the portal, it will 7 Annual Report 2020-21 be directly sent to the LC/IC of the concerned space of home, the key legislation is the employer. Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA), 2005. The objective of the law 2.6 The Ministry has also published is to prevent violence and provide immediate a Handbook and Training Module on the and emergency relief in case of such situations Act to help people understand the Act in a irrespective of the status of woman’s relationship practical manner. The training module could with the respondent. The Act recognises be customised as per the service rules of the women’s right to live free from violence within organisations. the private space of their home. B. Child Marriage 2.10 Further, Ministry has requested all State 2.7 The Ministry has been taking pro-active Governments/UTs to appoint sufficient number measures to eliminate the practice of child of Protection Officers having independent marriage.