Page 985 - Compendium of UGC Regulations 1957-2023

Regulations pertaining to Student’s Grievance Redressal, Promotion of Equity, Anti-Ragging Measures, and
Prevention of Sexual Harassment etc.:

(4) Since research students and doctoral candidates are particularly vulnerable the HEIs
must ensure that the guidelines for ethics for Research Supervision are put in place.
(5) All HEIs must conduct a regular and half yearly review of the efficacy and implementation
of their anti-sexual harassment policy.
(6) All Academic Staff Colleges (now known as Human Resource Development Centres
(HRDCs) and Regional Centres for Capacity Building (RCCBs) must incorporate
sessions on gender in their orientation and refresher courses. This should be across
disciplines, and preferably mainstreamed using the UGC SAKSHAM Report which
provides indicative modules in this regard.
(7) Orientation courses for administrators conducted in HEIS must have a module on gender
sensitization and sexual harassment issues. Regular workshops are to be conducted for
all sections of the HEI community.
(8) Counselling services must be institutionalised in all HEIS and must have well trained
full-time counsellors.
(9) Many HEIS having large campuses have a deficit in lighting and are experienced as
unsafe places by the institutional community. Adequate lighting is a necessary aspect
of infrastructure and maintenance.
(10) Adequate and well trained security including a good proportion or balance of women
security staff is necessary. Security staff must receive gender sensitization training as a
part of conditions of appointment.
(11) HEIS must ensure reliable public transport, especially within large campuses between
different sections of the HEI, hostels, libraries, laboratories and main buildings, and
especially those that do not have good access for day scholars. Lack of safety as well
as harassment is exacerbated when employees and students cannot depend on safe
public transport. Reliable transport may be considered by HEIS to enable employees
and students to work late in libraries, laboratories and to attend programmes in the
evenings.
(12) Residential HEIs should accord priority to construction of women’s hostels. For
the growing population of young women wishing to access higher education, hostel
accommodation is desirable in both urban and rural areas and at all levels of higher
education which provides a modicum of protection from harassment of all kinds.
(13) Concern for the safety of women students must not be cited to impose discriminatory
rules for women in the hostels as compared to male students. Campus safety policies
should not result in securitization, such as over monitoring or policing or curtailing the
freedom of movement, especially for women employees and students.
(14) Adequate health facilities are equally mandatory for all HEIS. In the case of women
this must include gender sensitive doctors and nurses, as well as the services of a
gynaecologist.\
(15) The Women’s Development Cells in colleges shall be revived and funded to be
able to carry out the range of activities required for gender sensitization and remain
autonomous of the functioning of anti sexual harassment committees and ICCs. At the
same time they shall extend their activities to include gender sensitization programmes
in consultation with ICCs and help to disseminate anti- sexual harassment policies on
campuses on a regular basis. The ‘cultural’ space and the ‘formal academic space’ need
to collaborate to render these workshops innovative, engaging and non- mechanical.

984
UGC Regulations