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Chapter VII · District Officer

Section 20

Duties and powers of District Officer

Statutory textCounsel-reviewed publication
The District Officer shall,—
monitor the timely submission of report furnished by the Local Committee;
take such measures as may be necessary for engaging non-governmental organisations for creation of awareness on sexual harassment and the rights of the women.

Transcribed from the official India Code source for reading and comparison. PIH plain-language guidance is editorial and separate; this page is not legal advice.

Source: India Code, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of IndiaRetrieved: 2026-09-10India Code PDF, p. 12India Code PDF — last updated 31 August 2021

Plain Language

The District Officer has two core duties: first, to ensure the Local Committee submits its reports on time; second, to spread awareness about the Act, including by involving NGOs and community organisations.

District oversight is designed to keep the Local Committee system visible and functioning, not dormant.

This section creates a district-level administrative anchor that matters when a workplace has no Internal Committee or the complaint is against the employer.

Why It Matters

Without active district-level oversight, Local Committees may go unconstituted or under-resourced, leaving workers in smaller workplaces without effective complaint mechanisms.

The awareness-building mandate recognises that legal rights mean nothing if the people who need them do not know about them.

Practical Example

Scenario: A District Officer notices that the Local Committee in their district has not submitted any annual reports for two consecutive years.

Outcome: The District Officer should follow up with the Local Committee, identify obstacles to timely reporting, and ensure compliance with the reporting obligation.

Scenario: A District Officer partners with local NGOs to conduct awareness workshops in unorganised-sector workplaces and domestic-worker communities.

Outcome: This fulfils the Section 20(b) mandate and extends the Act's reach to workers who might otherwise never learn about their rights.

Who Must Act

district officer

  • Monitor timely submission of reports by the Local Committee.
  • Create awareness about the Act, including by engaging NGOs and community organisations.

Compliance

✓

Monitor timely submission of reports by the Local Committee

Actor: District Officer · Rule: Section 20(a)

✓

Take measures to create awareness of the Act, including engaging NGOs

Actor: District Officer · Rule: Section 20(b)

Common Mistakes

✗

Assuming the District Officer's role is purely ceremonial — the section imposes active monitoring and awareness duties.

✗

Treating awareness campaigns as a one-time activity rather than an ongoing responsibility.

✗

Ignoring the Local Committee reporting cycle because no complaints have been filed — the monitoring duty exists regardless of caseload.

Related Sections

§5Notification of District Officer — Establishes how the District Officer is appointed§6Constitution and jurisdiction of Local Committee — The Local Committee whose reports the District Officer monitors§21Committee to submit annual report — Prescribes the annual report that the District Officer must monitor§24Appropriate Government to publicise the Act — Complements the District Officer's awareness-building mandate

Source & Status

Source and review statusPublication ready
Source version
India Code PDF — last updated 31 August 2021
Source location
India Code PDF, p. 12
Retrieved

View the official record page

Statutory blocks are kept separate from PIH plain-language and operational guidance. The reading copy is not legal advice.

Legal review status: counsel-reviewed. All sections have valid documentary counsel evidence and publication signals are enabled.

Judicial material: no verified judicial interpretation is published in this reading copy. Judicial analysis is a separate layer from the statutory transcription and PIH editorial guidance.