Ref. No.:SMC/631/2021

COMMITTEE AGAINST GENDER HARASSMENT

In compliance withVishakha guidelines (1997) in the aftermath of various incidents of sexual harassment, Santiniketan Medical College has constituted a Committee against Sexual Harassment in 2021 which will be for both employees and students of the Institute.

Objectives:

It shall be the duty of the employer or other responsible persons in work places or other institutions to prevent or deter the commission of acts of sexual harassment and to provide the procedures for the resolution, settlement or prosecution of acts, of sexual harassment by taking all steps required.

For this purpose, sexual harassment includes such unwelcome sexually determined behaviour (whether directly or by implication) as:

1. Physical contact and advances.
2. A demand or request for sexual favours.
3. Sexually coloured remarks.
4. Showing pornography.
5. Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

It is discriminatory for instance when the woman has reasonable grounds to believe that her objection would disadvantage her in connection with her employment or work including recruiting or promotion or when it creates a hostile work environment. Adverse consequences might be visited if the victim does not consent to the conduct in question or raises any objectionthereto.

The objectives of the Committee will be as follows:

• To prevent discrimination and sexual harassment against women, by promoting gender amity among students and employees
• To lay down procedures for the prohibition, resolution, settlement and prosecution of acts of discrimination and sexual harassment against women, by the students and the employees
• To deal with cases of discrimination and sexual harassment against women, in a time bound manner, aiming at ensuring support services to the victimized and termination of the harassment
• To recommend appropriate punitive action against the guilty party

Composition

The Committee consists of members of the faculty, legal expert, service staff and students’ representatives.
The members of the committee for the current academic year are:

Sl. No	Name	Designation	Contact No
01	Prof. (Dr.) Nandita Basu, Professor & HOD, Department of Pathology	Chairperson	9433090299
02	Prof. (Dr.) Gautam Narayan Sarkar, Principal	Co-Chairperson	8336861214
03	Prof. (Dr.) Swapan Bhattacharjee, Professor & HOD, Department of Anatomy	Secretary	9434031520
04	Prof. (Dr.) Sudakshina Chattopadhyay (Mukherjee), Professor & HOD, Department of Anaesthesiology	Member	9831147927
05	Dr. Susmita Sen, Associate Professor, Department of Anatomy	Member	9836651064
06	Dr. Sweta, Assistant Professor & HOD, Dentistry	Member	9477499630
07	Dr. Saswati Banerjee, Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology	Member	8315745875
08	Mr. Lutful Haque, Legal Adviser	Member	9432444105
09	Mr. Amit Kumar Ghosh, Administrative Officer	Member	9564781040
10	Prof. Dr. Sulekha Ghosh	Member	7479001548

The Committee deals with issues relating to sexual harassment at the Santiniketan Medical College. It is applicable to all the students, staff and faculty. A complaint of discrimination or sexual harassment may be lodged by the victim or a third party. A written complaint may be addressed to the Chairperson/Member Secretary of the Committee. If the complaint is made to the Director/ Chairman of the Institution or any of the Committee members, they may forward it to the Member Secretary of the Committee against Sexual Harassment. Here it should be noted that according to the Supreme Court guideline Sexual harassment can be defined as "unwelcome" sexually determined behaviour (whether directly or by implication) as:

• Physical contact and advances
• Demand or request for sexual favours
• Sexually colored remarks
• Showing pornography
• Other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature (Vishaka judgment by Supreme Court)
• To recommend appropriate punitive action against the guilty
The following are also considered as sexual harassment and is covered by the committee:
• Eve-teasing
• Unsavory remarks
• Jokes causing or likely to cause awkwardness or embarrassment
• Innuendos and taunts
• Gender based insults or sexist remarks
• Unwelcome sexual overtone in any manner such as over telephone (obnoxious telephone calls) and the like
• Touching or brushing against any part of the body and the like
• Displaying pornographic or other offensive or derogatory pictures, cartoons, pamphlets or sayings
• Forcible physical touch or
• Physical confinement against one's will and any other act likely to violate one's privacy