Sexual harassment still a taboo in India, goes unreported mostly: Swati Maliwal
New Delhi : POSH Conclave, organized at New Delhi by ' No Means No ' , a Centre for Skill Development & Training ( CSDT ) initiative, was held on March 29, 2023.
The event was inaugurated by Dr. Pinky Anand, Former Additional Solicitor General of India and Ms. Swati Maliwal, Chairperson , Delhi Commission for Women, who presided over the technical session along with several other distinguished speakers. In her inaugural speech, Dr. Pinky Anand highlighted the need for effective implementation of the Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) Act in the corporate world. She mentioned that sexual harassment is still considered a taboo and most victims never complain. Therefore, organizations must focus on prevention and training. She congratulated ' No Means No ' for organizing this huge conclave and thanked all delegates for being a part of this event.
Mr. Vishal Bhasin, Founder of No Means No, expressed his happiness on how awareness is really going up and more and more organizations now understand that sexual harassment is a serious issue and needs to be eliminated from the workplace. He mentioned that they have been part of this interesting journey of POSH Act implementation from 2013 and taking care of compliance for 500 plus organizations across India.
Vipin Pachouri , Co-founder Centre for Skill Development and Training ( CSDT ) expressed his delight for such an active participation and a full house. He reiterated that this really shows a radical shift in the mindset of corporates. He also focused on the need to train members of the Internal Committee well so that fair and comprehensive investigation can be followed.
Mr. Gaurav Thakur, Head - HR, Steelcase India, moderated two informative panel discussions and were well appreciated by all delegates.
The conclave was attended by more than 100 delegates represented by over 40 organizations, including Nestle, Ferns n Petals , Big FM, GMR, Indian Navy, IRCTC, Bank of Baroda, Nestle, Airtel, Hero, Tata Group companies and several others. There were more than 15 noted expert speakers who discussed various challenges in the implementation of the POSH Act and also shared exceptional practices.
The conclave ended with a pledge ceremony and the release of a handbook on POSH by Ms. Swati Maliwal, Chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, who was the Chief Guest of the Technical Session. Ms. Maliwal thanked the founders of ' No Means No ' for this wonderful initiative and echoed the need for such programs to come together so that awareness goes up and women feel more encouraged to speak up against such issues.
Mr Ravi Shastri , Founder- Yugank Media , said, " Digital outreach is the answer to increase awareness on this important issue and thats why we came on board as a partner to this event . "
Overall, the POSH conclave was a huge success, and the organizers received great feedback from the delegates. No Means No and Centre for Skill Development & Training initiatives are committed to continuing their efforts towards the effective implementation of the POSH Act across India. Other Speakers included Ms. Dhwani Rao, Associate Legal Counsel, Nestle Ms. Aarti Bhardwaj, D & I, Nestle India Ms. Gaurav Thakur, Head HR, Steelcase India Mr. R K Bhasin, Secretary General, Federation of Industry Trade & Services Mr. Pavan Duggal, Sr. Advocate, Cyber Law Expert Ms. Rita Singh, MD, Mesco Steels.
