New Delhi, February 14 Ensuring women's security is the first step towards national development and remains a top priority for the government, Union Women and Child Development Minister Annapurna Devi said on Friday, asserting that women are now at the center of policymaking and governance.
Addressing a national conference on the safety of women in the workplace, the minister said that women's participation in decision-making processes is steadily increasing, and they are playing a growing role in strengthening families, institutions, and the nation.
"Women's security is a priority because it is the foundation of national development. Women today are at the center of policy, and their participation in decision-making is rising," the minister said.
She said that India is undergoing unprecedented change, opening new avenues for women. The prime minister's vision of women-led development has given new dimensions to the country's growth model, with women increasingly driving social transformation.
"We have adopted a holistic approach to women's empowerment, focusing on safety, opportunity, dignity, and participation," she said.
Highlighting workplace safety measures, Devi said that the Ministry of Women and Child Development, as the nodal ministry for implementing the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, has worked to ensure that organizations comply with the law.
She noted that the upgraded SHe-Box portal, launched on August 29, 2024, has strengthened institutional mechanisms to address workplace harassment complaints. Nearly 1.5 lakh government and private organizations have registered on the platform, indicating growing awareness and sensitization towards women's security.
She also said that the gender budget has received its highest allocation so far, and the government is expanding support systems, including working women's hostels, to enable greater participation of women in the workforce.
The Ministry of Women and Child Development organized the national conference on safety of women in the workplace at Vigyan Bhawan here, bringing together senior officials from Central ministries, states, and Union Territories, industry leaders, civil society representatives, international organizations, and members of Internal and Local Committees under the POSH Act.
The conference aimed to reaffirm the government's commitment to creating safe, dignified, and harassment-free workplaces across sectors, and to strengthen the implementation of the POSH Act, 2013.
Officials said that the SHe-Box portal functions as a multilingual single-window platform for filing complaints, automatic forwarding to the concerned committee, and real-time tracking, while also serving as a compliance and training resource hub for organizations.
The event included national and international round-table talks on workplace safety, the release of compliance tools and awareness material, and a national pledge on workplace safety administered by the minister.
Around 1,500 participants from over 100 organizations attended the conference, which was also webcast for wider participation.