NEW DELHI: The Delhi Commission for Women on Wednesday gave recommendations to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation regarding steps to be taken to prevent and tackle sexual harassment on flights. The recommendations included action against highly intoxicated persons including preventing such persons from boarding the aircraft, protocols to handle such passengers on planes and limiting alcohol intake on flights.
“The rising cases of sexual harassment and unruly behaviour on flights are disturbing. The present DGCA guidelines and advisories do not address the issue of prevention and redressal of cases of sexual harassment properly. In fact, DGCA guidelines simply treat sexual harassment as unruly behaviour,” said DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal.
She said this is completely unacceptable and these guidelines need to be revised urgently. “We have sent a detailed recommendation to DGCA and sought an ATR on the same within 30 days,” she said. The Commission, in its recommendation, proposed action against persons who indulge in sexual harassment on flights.
These include registration of FIR against the offender, setting up an independent committee to enquire into complaints of sexual harassment from passengers headed by a retired woman judge, increasing punishment against such passengers including increasing the time period for which they can be put on ‘no-fly’ list from 6 months to 2 years and sensitisation of airline staff, among others.
It also noticed that the crime of sexual harassment is simply treated as an ‘unruly behaviour’ by the DGCA guidelines. The DCW has therefore recommended the creation of a separate category for such crimes.
Moreover, the Commission has proposed setting up mechanisms to raise an alarm on flights, CCTVs to be
installed in aircrafts and announcements and brochures against sexual harassment in flights.
‘Sexual harassment falls under unruly behaviour’
The present DGCA guidelines and advisories do not address the issue of prevention and redressal of cases of sexual harassment properly. In fact, DGCA guidelines simply treat sexual harassment as unruly behaviour, said DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal.