Parliament Question: Prevention of violence and protection of women and children in Maharashtra

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3840 TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.03.2026 PREVENTION OF VIOLENCE AND PROTECTION OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN MAHARASHTRA 3840. SHRI DHANANJAY BHIMRAO MAHADIK: Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state: (a) details regarding measures to prevent violence and protect women and children in Maharashtra over the last five years; (b) how many support centres, helplines and rehabilitation programs have been established for victims of domestic violence, trafficking and child abuse; (c) what steps are being taken to ensure awareness, legal support and timely intervention; and (d) how does the Ministry coordinate with Maharashtra State authorities to strengthen community outreach, monitoring mechanisms and enforcement of laws, thereby safeguarding the rights, safety and well-being of women and children while promoting social justice and protection across the State? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR) (a) to (d): ‘Police’ and ‘Public Order’ are State subjects under the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India. The responsibility to maintain law and order, protection of life and property of the citizens including investigation and prosecution crime against women rests with the respective State Governments and UT Administrations; they are competent to deal with such offences under the extant provisions of laws. The Central Government gives highest priority to ensuring safety and security of women and children, and has undertaken various legislative and schematic interventions in this regard. These include legislations such as “The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018‟ (now under Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita), “The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005”, “Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961”, “The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956”, “The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013”, The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, The Juvenile Justice Care and Protection of Children Act 2000 etc.The Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) implements ‘Mission Shakti’, a scheme in mission mode which aims to strengthen interventions for women safety, security and empowerment across the country, including Maharashtra. Mission Shakti comprises of two verticals ‘Sambal’ for safety and security of women and ‘Samarthya’ for empowerment of women. The ‘Sambal’ has components of One Stop Centre (OSC), Women Helpline (WHL), Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) and Nari Adalat. The ‘Samarthya’ has components of Shakti Sadan, Sakhi Niwas, Padhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), Palna and SANKALP: Hub for Empowerment of Women (SANKALP: HEW). One Stop Centre (OSC) component of Mission Shakti Umbrella Scheme, which is fully funded by the central government is implemented across the country since 1st April, 2015. It provides integrated support and assistance under one roof to women affected by violence and those in distress, both in private and public spaces. It also provides an integrated range of services including medical aid, legal aid and advice, temporary shelter, police assistance, psycho-social counselling to needy women. As of 31.12.2026, 926 One Stop Centres (OSCs) are operational across the country, and more than 13.37 lakh women have been assisted, of these, 67 OSCs are operational in Maharashtra. Women Helpline (WHL), aims to provide 24x7x365 emergency and non-emergency response through telephonic short-code 181 to women, both in public and private spaces by linking them with appropriate authorities such as Police, One Stop Centres, Hospitals, Legal Services Authorities etc. Additionally, it provides information about women welfare schemes and programs. Women Helpline is operational in 35 States and Union Territories and also integrated with Emergency Response Support System -112(ERSS-112). Through WHL, over 99.09 lakh women have been assisted across the country including the State of Maharashtra since the inception i.e. from 01.04.2015 till 28.02.2026, of these, over 3.77 lakh women have received assistance in Maharashtra. Shakti Sadan is an Integrated Relief and Rehabilitation Home for women in distressful situations including trafficked women. It aims at creating a safe and enabling environment for the women in such difficult situations, to enable them to overcome the adverse circumstances. The SANKALP: HEW (Hub for Empowerment of Women), serves as a vehicle to bridge the information and knowledge gap regarding schemes and facilities available for women as well as guide them to avail the benefits and entitlements. In order to strengthen transparency and accessibility in service delivery with respect to reliefs and rehabilitation to women in distress, the MWCD launched Mission Shakti Dashboard, on 22.01.2025 (https://missionshakti.wcd.gov.in/). The dashboard hosts updated lists of Protection Officers (POs), Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) and Nodal Officers of various schemes, including OSCs, WHL, Shakti Sadan, Sakhi Niwas Anganwadi-cum-Creches, etc. The portal also consolidates all major helplines for easy public access. The Mission Shakti Dashboard data is also accessible via the Mission Shakti Mobile Application. A woman in distress can now book an appointment with her nearest OSC through both the portal and the mobile application. This Ministry is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme namely ‘Mission Vatsalya’, through the State and UT Governments to deliver various services for Children in Need of Care and Protection (CNCP) as well as Children in Conflict with Law (CCL). These services include Institutional Care and Non-Institutional Care. Mission Vatsalya promotes family based non- institutional care of children in difficult circumstances based on the principle of institutionalization of children as a measure of last resort. Under non-institutional care, support is provided to the children through Sponsorship, Foster Care, Adoption and After Care. The scheme provides Rs.4000/- per month to children eligible for non- institutional care(Sponsorship/ Foster Care/ Aftercare). The Child Care Institutions (CCIs) established under the Mission Vatsalya scheme support, inter-alia, age-appropriate education, access to vocational training, recreation, health care, counselling etc. Support under non-institutional care is provided by way of sponsorship, foster care and after care to children in need of care and protection. The emergency response and outreach service under Mission Vatsalya is provided through Toll-free Child Helpline (#1098) which is a 24x7x365 service for children in difficult circumstances. It is integrated with the ERSS-112 Helpline of the Ministry of Home Affairs and Women Helpline (181). This Ministry has developed an integrated unified Mission Vatsalya Portal in consultation and coordination with States and UTs. The TrackChild portal for Missing/ Found Children, Khoya- Paya application for Missing/ Sighted Children and CARINGS portal for adoption have been integrated with this unified Mission Vatsalya Portal. The TrackChild portal is implemented with support and involvement of various stakeholders namely Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Railways, State Governments and UT Administrations, Child Welfare Committees, Juvenile Justice Boards, National Legal Services Authority, etc. It is also integrated with the Crime and Criminal Tracking & Network Systems (CCTNS) of the Ministry of Home Affairs which allows interoperability in terms of matching of F.I.Rs of missing children with data base of TrackChild to trace and match missing children by the State and UT police concerned. Further, through Khoya Paya module any citizen can report about any missing or sighted children. The Government of India has set up a dedicated fund called the “Nirbhaya Fund” for implementation of initiatives aimed at enhancing the safety and security for women including in the State of Maharashtra. All projects/ schemes under Nirbhaya Fund are demand driven. The fund provides financial assistance to Ministries, Departments, States and UTs for implementation of various projects such as ERSS-112, Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC), Safe City Project in 8 major cities namely Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Mumbai, Women Help Desks (WHDs) in police stations, Anti Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs), Strengthening of DNA analysis, cyber forensic and related facilities in State Forensic Laboratories (SFSLs), Setting up Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) including exclusive POCSO courts to dispose of cases pending trial under rape and POCSO Act, etc. *****