Lok Sabha Question No. 4984 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-03-31
Subject: Digital Empowerment of Women
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Anil Firojiya

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4984

TO BE ANSWERED ON 31.03.2023

## DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN

## †4984.  SHRI ANIL FIROJIYA:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a) the works undertaken to make women digitally skilled and aware; and
- (b) the efforts being made by the Government to create a safe online space for women and girls?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI )

(a):  The  Government of India has taken various steps to ensure empowerment of women and girls  through  their  educational,  social,  economic  and  political  uplifting through  various  schematic  interventions.  The  Government  has  also  taken  several initiatives for digital literacy of citizen including women and girls so that they are able to operate digital devices (like computers, smart phones etc.) and work on it for various purposes including for educational, commercial and digital transaction purposes. One such  initiative  is  'Pradhan  Mantri  Gramin  Digital  Saksharta  Abhiyan  (PMGDISHA)' under Digital India programme. It aims to bridge the digital divide specially targeting rural population including the marginalised sections of society, women and girls by covering  6  crore  rural  households.  The  percentage  of  women  benefited  under PMGDISHA is over 53% of total enrolled, over 54% of total trained and over 56% of total certified.

In addition, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education is administering 'National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology' (NMEICT) Scheme, SWAYAM (Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds), SWAYAM PRABHA, National Digital Library (NDL), Virtual Lab, e[1]Yantra, NEAT (National Education Alliance for Technology) etc. to ensure quality education through e-learning to students across the country.

Ministry  of  Women  and  Child  Development  has  taken  a  number  of  initiatives  to empower women through the schemes and programmes implemented in the country. The Ministry has formulated 'Mission Shakti', an Integrated Women Empowerment Programme,  as  Umbrella  Scheme  for  the  Safety,  Security  and  Empowerment  of Women for implementation during the 15th Finance Commission period. It aims at strengthening  interventions  for  safety,  security  and  empowerment  of  women  in  a mission mode through institutional and convergence mechanism for greater efficiency, effectiveness and financial prudence.

(b): With the expansion of internet and more and more Indians coming online, the incidents  of  cyber  crimes  against  women  and  children  is  also  increasing.  The challenges  of  cyber  space  are  many  which  flow  from  its  vastness  and  borderless character. That is why the government is committed to policies and actions that ensure that Internet in India is always open, safe & trusted and accountable for all Indians.

'Police'  and  'Public  Order'  are  State  subjects  as  per  the  Seventh  Schedule  of  the Constitution of India. States/ Union Territories (UTs) are primarily responsible for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of crimes including cyber crime through their Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs). These LEAs take legal action as per provisions of law against the offenders. The Central Government supplements the initiatives of the State Governments through advisories and financial assistance under various  schemes  for  their  capacity  building.  The  Ministry  of  Women  and  Child Development takes up the matter with Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) and Ministry of Education for taking appropriate actions to curb the menace and to ensure safety and security of women and young children on online platforms. In order to equip children in negotiating the online  world  with  adequate  safety,  Ministry  of  Education  was  requested  to  issue necessary directions to Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) for incorporating suitable content pertaining to cyber safety in the school curriculum of children and advise State Governments to do the same through their School Boards.

To  strengthen  the  mechanism  to  deal  with  cyber  crimes  including  crimes  against women  and  children  in  a  comprehensive  and  coordinated  manner,  the  Central Government has taken  measures  in  consultation  with  various  stakeholders  which, inter-alia,  include  'the  Information  Technology  (  IT)  Act,  2000',  'The  Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021', establishment  of  Indian  Cyber  Crime  Coordination  Centre  (I4C)  under  Ministry  of Home  Affairs,  a  National  Cyber  Crime  Reporting  Portal  (www.cybercrime.gov.in) under 'Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC)' project under Nirbhaya  Fund,  spreading  awareness  about  cyber  crimes,  issuance  of  alerts/ advisories,  capacity  building/  training  of  law  enforcement  personnel/  prosecutors/ judicial  officers,  improving  cyber  forensic  facilities,  a  toll  free  number  1930  (earlier 155260) etc.

The  Protection  of  Children  from  Sexual  Offences  (POCSO)  Act  contains  effective provisions to curb the menace of child abuse. The Act provides mandatory reporting, child friendly provisions of recording of statement and evidence and speedy trial of the cases. There are adequate legal penal provisions including POCSO Act, 2012 for the sexual offences against the children, as per the gravity of offences.

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