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GB Nagar plans app to check sexual harassment at workplace
Noida: The district administration, together with an IT company, is going to launch a mobile and web-based application named ‘SHOR’ (Sexual Harassment Online Redressal)
Noida: The district administration, together with an IT company, is going to launch a mobile and web-based application named ‘SHOR’ (Sexual Harassment Online Redressal) to report sexual harassment cases faced by women employees at workplaces. The app will be launched on October 18, officials said.
The company will also provide free-of-cost training and also conduct awareness sessions for workers in various organisations.
Spread across 1,442 sq km area, the Gautam Budh Nagar district is home to various factories, government offices and multinational companies with a sizeable women workforce.
In the month of June, the administration had tied up with IT company Interra Information Technologies to come up with an online platform that would allow women employees file harassment related complaints online. Officials are expecting that the initiative will motivate women to come forward and register grievances without feeling vulnerable.
As per the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, all organisations having women employees have to submit a yearly report to the administration listing all sexual harassment complaints received and action taken.
There are over 3,500 organisations functioning in the district but last year, not even 4% of all organisations had submitted the yearly report. This had prompted the district magistrate had to send notices to organisations asking them to comply.
“We have tied up with the IT firm to come up with a portal wherein women employees will be able to register sexual harassment complaints without hassles. All organisations in the district will be using the application. The initiative has been taken to ensure a safe atmosphere for women at workplaces,” BN Singh, district magistrate, said.
The software will be available for both private and government organizations. The complaints will be addressed by the internal committee meant to investigate sexual harassment cases in each organisation and the district administration will keep a track of these complaints. The case will be referred to the police only if the matter is criminal in nature.
