Kerala to frame a new women's policy covering workplace safety and mental health, Minister Bindu Krishna says

17 October 2026

Minister for Labour and Women and Child Development Bindu Krishna said the State Government will frame a new women's policy that addresses women's social and workplace safety along with their mental health and wellbeing. She was inaugurating a state-level seminar on the POSH Act 2013 and women's mental health, organised by the Kerala Women's Commission at the Thaikkad Government Rest House in Thiruvananthapuram. The minister said the policy will be drafted from suggestions gathered across sectors of society, with the aim of announcing it on the next International Women's Day. She said establishments with ten or more employees must have working internal complaints committees under the POSH Act 2013, and that the department will carry out close monitoring and strict inspections to ensure they function rather than exist on paper. Commission chairperson P. Satheedevi, who presided, said existing laws will protect women only if men are also made aware of them. Shiji V., Deputy Secretary in the Law Department, took a session on the POSH Act 2013, and Dr P.M. Binu Thottathil spoke on women's mental health. The release is numbered PNX 4365/2026.