1. To fulfill the directive of the supreme court in respect of implementing a policy against sexual harassment in the institution.
2. To generate awareness on the concept of sexual harassment at workplace.
3. To provide guidance on how to create a sexual harassment free work environment.
4. To evolve a mechanism for prevention, prohibition and redressal of sexual harassment at the workplace.
5. To conduct awareness programmes on sexual harassment for staff and students at regular intervals.
What is sexual harassment?
According to the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, “sexual harassment includes one or more of the following unwelcome acts or behaviour (whether directly or by implication) namely:
• Physical contact or advances, or
• A demand or request for sexual favours, or
• Making sexually coloured remarks, or
• Showing pornography, or
• Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature.”
Types of Sexual Harassment at the Workplace
a. Physical conduct
• Physical violence
• Physical contact, e.g. unwelcome touching, patting,stroking, grabbing pinching, hugging
• Blocking someone’s path with the purpose of making a sexual advance
Rape or attempted rape
b. Verbal conduct
• Sexual comments, stories and jokes
• Sexual advances (explicit or implicit)
• Repeated unwelcome social invitations
• Insults based on the sex of the worker
• Condescending or paternalistic remarks
• Telling lies or spreading rumors about a person’s personal or sex life.
c. Non-verbal conduct
• Display of sexually explicit or suggestive material
• Sexually suggestive gestures
• Starting, stalking, whistling, etc.
• Unwanted SMS/e-mail containing sexual comments.
Know your rights
What can you do if you are harassed?
Say no. Tell the harasser that his advances are unwanted and you want them stopped.
Don’t delay. Pay attention to cues or comments indicating harassment. If a person’s behavior makes you uncomfortable, say so.
Keep a record. Should the harassment continue, keep track of dates, time, places and statements. This information can be used to support a complaint.
Talk to others. Let the department head, supervisor of the harasser, know what has happened. Check with other coworkers to see whether they have also been harassed; incidents of harassment are often not isolated, and sexual harassers are likely to exhibit a pattern of such behavior.
Don’t hesitate. Regardless of the outcome of your complaint, you will be fully protected against retaliation for making the complaint.
How can you avoid harassment?
Set your own boundaries. Say “NO” emphatically and clearly when you are asked to go places, do things, respond to questions, or engage in situations that make you uncomfortable. Do not worry about offending the other person or harming his ego. Take care of yourself first.
Be aware of situations and people who may harm you. Don’t ignore others’ warnings about particular people or social settings. Acknowledge their concern for you and for themselves. Trust your instincts about possible danger.
In an uncomfortable situation, be direct and honest, and remove yourself from the situation immediately. Regardless of previous behavior or signals you may have given, you have the absolute right to halt any sexual exchange at any time. Accept this right and act on it. If someone tells you to stop an encounter, listen to her or him and respect the request. Anything else is harassment.
Who can help you?
Do not investigate the matter yourself. They investigate complaints and answer questions and provide guidance about the complaint through investigation process. The phone numbers to register the complaints are displayed in the campus. The students can directly contact these numbers for registering their complaints. They can contact the student counselors, Head of the Department / Dean / Director through mobile phones to register their complaints. The phone number details of the concern authority are given in academic calendar and displayed in notice boards.