Abbreviations:
WCD - Women and Child Development
IRWA - Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
NCW - National Commission for Women
Based on Observations made by parliamentary standing committee and recommendation made by NCW on basis of consultation with Civil society groups and likeminded individuals, WCD proposed amendments in IRWA keeping in mind the recent technological advancement in field of communications such as social media platforms, over the top services etc.
Reforms proposed
WCD - Women and Child Development
IRWA - Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.
NCW - National Commission for Women
Based on Observations made by parliamentary standing committee and recommendation made by NCW on basis of consultation with Civil society groups and likeminded individuals, WCD proposed amendments in IRWA keeping in mind the recent technological advancement in field of communications such as social media platforms, over the top services etc.
Reforms proposed
- Amendment in definition of term advertisement to include digital platform or electronic form or hoardings or through SMS, MMS etc.
- Amendment in definition of distribution to include publication, license or uploading using computer resource or communication device or in.
- Insertion of new definition to define the term publish
- Amendment in section 4 to include that no person shall publish or distribute or cause to be published or cause to be distributed by any means of any material which contains indecent representation of women in any form
- Penalty similar to that provided under IT Act 2000
Creation of New Authority:
- Creation of centralised authority under aegis of NCW
- It is headed by Member secretary, NCW, having representatives from
- Advertising standards council of India
- Press Council of Inida
- Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
- One member with experience of working on women issues.
- The centralised Authority will be authorised to receive complaints or grievances regarding any programme or advertisement broadcasted or publication and investigate/examine all matters relating to the indecent representation of women.
Necessity:
- Reforms are proposed keeping in mind the recent technological advancements
- Need was felt to widen the scope of law so as to cover such forms of media on one hand and to strengthen the existing safeguards to prevent indecent representation of women through any media form on the other.
- The indecent representation of women (Prohibition) amendment bill, 2012 was introduced in Rajya Sabha, December 2012 which referred the bill to department related Parliament Standing Committee for consideration.
