Parliament Question: Women representation in Board Membership of companies

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 370 ANSWERED ON TUESDAY, FEBURARY 03, 2025 WOMEN REPRESENTATION IN BOARD MEMBERSHIP OF COMPANIES QUESTION 370. Smt. Rajathi: Will the Minister of CORPORATE AFFAIRS be pleased to state: (a) whether the Ministry has plans to increase the representation of female Board Members in all listed companies and large public limited firms with paid-up capital of ₹ 100 crore or more; (b) the number of instances of non compliance since 2014 including details on the number of companies against which penal action has been taken; (c) the amount collected as penalty year-wise since 2021; and (d) whether Government of India has plans to enact a comprehensive Workplace Gender Equality Act to encourage more gender diversity in establishments? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ROAD, TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS [SHRI HARSH MALHOTRA] (a): No such proposal is under consideration. However, the second proviso to sub-section (1) of section 149 of the Companies Act, 2013 stipulates that such class or classes of companies as may be prescribed shall have at least one woman director. In furtherance of this, Rule 3 of the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014 provides that every listed company and every other public company having a paid-up share capital of rupees one hundred crore or more, or a turnover of rupees three hundred crore or more, is required to appoint at least one woman director. In addition, as per SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, in case of the top 1,000 listed entities based on market capitalisation, the requirement is to appoint woman independent director on their boards.(b): The details of instance of non compliances and action taken thereon are as follows: Number of Number of Number of Number of cases Number of cases instances of companies prosecutions which were where penalties non- involved filed compounded were levied during compliance adjudication 184 180 151 11 49 (c): Amount of penalty collected as from 2021 to 2025 in respect of non-compliances related to appointment of woman directors is as follows: Year Amount of penalty collected during adjudication 2021 6,10,500 2022 14,58,500 2023 21,61,000 2024 3,00,001 2025 33,36,500 (d): The Government has enacted various laws and policies relating to maternity benefits, equal remuneration, prevention of sexual harassment at workplace, labour welfare, social security, and occupational safety, which together create a comprehensive framework addressing equality, safety, and dignity of women both in domestic and public spaces including workplace. The Government of India adopts a consultative and evidence-based approach in policy formulation, taking into account feedback from stakeholders including the public, industry bodies, civil society organizations, experts, and State Governments/UTs, socio-economic development of the country, emerging needs, and takes appropriate measures, from time to time. *******