* Adopted by the Committee at its ninety-second session (2–20 February 2026).

List of issues and questions prior to the submission of the combined sixth and seventh periodic reports of India *

General

1.Please provide information and statistics, disaggregated by sex, age, nationality, disability, ethnicity, minority status, geographical location and socioeconomic background, on the current situation of women in the State Party, to enable monitoring of the implementation of the Convention. In accordance with the State Party’s obligations under articles 1 and 2 of the Convention, and in line with target 5.1 of the Sustainable Development Goals, to end all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere, please indicate how the State Party intends to improve the collection and analysis of data pertaining to the areas covered by the Convention, so as to support policymaking and programme development and to measure progress towards the implementation of the Convention and the promotion of substantive equality between women and men, including with regard to the specific areas covered in the present document.

Visibility of the Convention and the Committee’s general recommendations

2.Please provide information on measures taken to:

(a)Raise awareness within Indian society and among public officials, the judiciary and law enforcement officers of the Convention and of the Committee’s general recommendations;

(b)Ensure that the Convention and the concept of substantive equality between women and men are sufficiently known among the general public and that women are aware of their rights under the Convention and the remedies available to claim redress for violations of those rights;

(c)Establish and operationalize systematic and regular capacity-building to ensure that the Convention and the concept of substantive equality between women and men are known among government officials, judges and parliamentarians so that the provisions of the Convention are effectively applied by all branches of government.

Legislative and institutional framework

3.In the light of the Committee’s previous concluding observations (CEDAW/C/IND/CO/4-5, para. 9), please indicate:

(a)Steps taken to adopt a comprehensive anti-discrimination law to define and prohibit both direct and indirect discrimination in the public and private spheres, as well as intersecting and compounded forms of discrimination against women, including those based on caste, religion, tribe, disability, marital status, sexual orientation and gender identity, in accordance with article 1 of the Convention and general recommendation No. 28 (2010) on the core obligations of States Parties under article 2 of the Convention;

(b)Any measures taken to harmonize existing laws and ensure effective remedies and enforcement mechanisms for victims of discrimination in both public and private spheres;

(c)Steps taken to review and withdraw the State Party’s declarations regarding articles 5 (a) and 16 (1) and (2) of the Convention, as recommended in the previous concluding observations (para. 21).

Access to justice

4.Please provide information on:

(a)Sentences imposed on women, including death sentences, in particular data disaggregated by crime, age, caste, religion, marital status and socioeconomic background;

(b)Whether gender-specific defences and mitigating factors are considered in the sentencing of women, including capital sentencing;

(c)Measures taken to ensure that all judges receive comprehensive training with respect to gender-based discrimination, domestic violence and tactics of coercive control, and to ensure that women in conflict with the law are not subject to gender stereotyping by judges or prosecutors at trial or during sentencing;

(d)Steps taken to ensure that police officers register first information reports accurately and efficiently and any efforts to prevent stereotyping and discrimination against members of minority communities, in particular Dalit, Adivasi and Kashmiri women and half-widows, when filing such reports;

(e)Any mechanisms to address gaps in the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act to prevent delays in reporting, investigation and prosecution in cases of sexual violence against women and girls from the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes;

(f)Measures taken to address police negligence and strengthen accountability in cases of sexual violence, as well as to ensure timely and effective investigation and prosecution of rape cases, including efforts to reduce delays in the judicial process.

Women human rights defenders

5.Please provide information on:

(a)Measures taken to ensure the protection of women human rights defenders, including Dalit, Adivasi, Muslim and LGBTQ+ women, environmental activists and sexual and reproductive rights activists, from intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest, online abuse and violence;

(b)Steps taken to investigate and sanction acts of reprisal or threats against women human rights defenders and their organizations and to repeal or amend laws and regulations that unduly restrict their work, including the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act and security-related legislation;

(c)Any plans to establish a national protection mechanism to recognize and safeguard the role of women human rights defenders in the promotion of gender equality and women’s rights.

National machinery for the advancement of women

6.In the light of the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 17), please provide information on:

(a)Steps taken to strengthen the mandate and authority of the Ministry of Women and Child Development and increase its human, technical and financial resources;

(b)Measures taken to enhance coordination and collaboration between the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the National Commission for Women and other governmental and non-governmental bodies, including women’s civil society organizations, in particular those representing women affected by intersecting forms of discrimination, with a view to ensuring the consistent application of gender equality measures and evaluating the effectiveness of programmes and initiatives to advance women’s rights in all spheres of life;

(c)The frequency and outcomes of gender impact assessments conducted on legislation and policies since the previous reporting cycle, including the number of laws or policies modified based on such assessments.

National human rights institution

7.Please provide information on progress with respect to ensuring that the National Human Rights Commission is adhering to the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles); that it is actively implementing the recommendations made by the Subcommittee on Accreditation of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (in 2025), including regarding equitable representation of women in the Commission’s decision-making body and staff; and that it has a strong mandate to protect and promote women’s human rights.

Temporary special measures

8.In line with the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 19), please provide information on:

(a)The temporary special measures put in place to increase the number of girls, including from disadvantaged groups, enrolled in secondary and tertiary education in all states;

(b)The design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of temporary special measures taken, to ensure that they are based on evidence, focused on equity and responsive to the specific barriers faced by women from marginalized communities.

Women and peace and security

9.Please provide information on measures taken to:

(a)Implement the women and peace and security agenda in line with Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) and subsequent resolutions on women and peace and security and with general recommendation No. 40 (2024) on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems;

(b)Review or repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act to remove immunity provisions that hinder accountability for sexual and gender-based violence by members of the security forces and measures to ensure that such offences are investigated and prosecuted under ordinary criminal law in line with the recommendations of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and of the Justice Verma Committee on Amendments to Criminal Law;

(c)Ensure civilian oversight of the security sector and to establish accountability mechanisms with appropriate sanctions for violations of women’s rights by members of the armed and security forces, including through the systematic provision of gender-sensitive training on women’s rights and the adoption and enforcement of a code of conduct and a code of ethics aimed at guaranteeing full alignment with international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

Gender stereotypes and harmful practices

10.In view of the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 21), please provide information on:

(a)The design, implementation and impact assessment of measures taken to eliminate stereotypes relating to the roles and responsibilities of women and men in the family and in society, including the preference for male children;

(b)Any progress made in addressing the stigmatization of women’s reproductive and gynaecological health, which often prevents women from seeking care, especially in rural and economically disadvantaged communities;

(c)The number of reported cases of, prosecutions and convictions for and sentences imposed on the perpetrators of harmful practices, in particular child and forced marriage, witchcraft accusations and so-called honour crimes, disaggregated by relevant factors, such as age, ethnicity, minority status, geographical location, disability and socioeconomic background;

(d)The prevalence, extent and impact of female genital mutilation/cutting in the State Party, as well as any plans and time frame for the enactment and enforcement of comprehensive legislation prohibiting this harmful practice.

Gender-based violence against women and girls

11.Please provide information on:

(a)Steps taken to review the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (penal code), in order to criminalize marital rape and to implement the recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee as requested by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in its previous concluding observations, to adopt comprehensive legislation on technology-facilitated gender-based violence and to expand the protection from sexual harassment to political and religious institutions;

(b)Steps taken to ensure the effective implementation of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, in order to enable women to live in their matrimonial homes without fear of physical and psychological violence;

(c)Measures taken to ensure the effective functioning, accessibility and adequate resourcing of one-stop centres (also known as sakhi centres) across all regions, including the availability of qualified personnel to provide comprehensive medical, legal, psychosocial and shelter services for women and girls who are victims of gender-based violence. Please also provide statistical data on the number, geographical coverage and utilization of such centres, disaggregated by age, nationality, disability, ethnicity, minority status and socioeconomic background, as well as information on the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in place to assess their effectiveness in ensuring access to justice, protection and rehabilitation for victims and survivors;

(d)Measures taken to improve data collection and analysis regarding the prevalence of gender-based violence, including technology-facilitated violence, disaggregated by age and other sociodemographic characteristics, as well as the relationship between the victim and the perpetrator. In addition, please provide statistical data on complaints of gender-based violence, including under the Prevention of Atrocities Act, prosecution and conviction rates, protection measures and the sanctions imposed on perpetrators, as well as reparations provided to the victims;

(e)Measures to ensure recurrent training of the judiciary and law enforcement and healthcare professionals to adequately address gender-based violence and eradicate bias affecting marginalized groups of women, and to ensure multisectoral coordination.

Trafficking and exploitation of women and girls in prostitution

12.In view of the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 23), please provide detailed information on:

(a)Progress made in reviewing and reforming the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act to guarantee that all victims of trafficking, including foreign women and girls, have access to comprehensive protection, high-quality medical and psychosocial care, free legal aid and sustainable economic reintegration, irrespective of their willingness to testify against perpetrators;

(b)Measures taken to address the root causes of trafficking by promoting alternative livelihood opportunities and raising awareness in rural and marginalized communities;

(c)Progress made in strengthening the investigation, prosecution and punishment of traffickers through improved data collection, coordination and accountability mechanisms;

(d)Measures adopted to improve the identification and referral of victims of trafficking and to ensure that they are not detained as a result of their trafficked status, as well as measures adopted to ensure that sex work is not conflated with trafficking in persons;

(e)Steps taken to implement the Supreme Court order of 2022 on the rights of sex workers.

Participation in political and public life

13.Please provide information on measures taken to:

(a)Operationalize the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023 (enacting the Women’s Reservation Bill), specifying the steps taken to enforce the 33 per cent mandatory representation of women in Parliament and state legislative assemblies with a view to increasing women’s representation towards 50:50 parity, and to establish clear timelines and sanctions for non-compliance;

(b)Strengthen the meaningful participation and leadership of women, including those from marginalized communities, in political parties, electoral processes, statutory boards, the judiciary and decision-making bodies in all areas, in line with general recommendation No. 40 (2024), in particular through capacity-building, awareness-raising and mechanisms that support active participation in gram sabhas, mahila sabhas and other local governance forums.

Education

14.In view of the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 27), please provide detailed information on:

(a)Measures taken to ensure the effective implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act and the National Education Policy 2020, including through adequate resourcing, to guarantee girls’ equal access to high-quality education at all levels;

(b)Efforts to make schools safe and girl-friendly, with adequate sanitation facilities and gender-sensitive and accessible infrastructure and mechanisms for preventing and responding to any form of gender-based violence;

(c)Measures adopted to improve the quality and content of education through gender-responsive teacher training and curricula free from stereotypes, including ensuring that teachers are adequately trained to address the specific needs of girls and women from disadvantaged and minority communities, including Dalit, Adivasi, Muslim and rural girls and girls with disabilities;

(d)Actions taken to address the causes of low enrolment and high dropout rates among girls, in particular girls from minority groups and those with disabilities. Please also provide information on the impact of hijab bans in schools and the adoption and implementation of policies aimed at retaining pregnant adolescents in school or enabling them to resume their education after giving birth;

(e)Measures taken to:

(i)Improve the literacy and educational attainment of women and girls affected by conflict, displacement or insecurity, including in Jammu and Kashmir and the north-eastern states;

(ii)Implement targeted programmes to support girls who have left school or university prematurely due to conflict-related disruptions and to facilitate their return to formal or non-formal education;

(iii)Prevent the occupation or use of schools by security forces or other armed actors in conflict-affected regions, in line with international humanitarian and human rights law and the commitment of India to the Safe Schools Declaration.

Employment

15.Please provide information on:

(a)Measures taken to increase women’s participation in the formal labour market, including through the adoption of temporary special measures, and to close the gender pay gap by ensuring the effective implementation of the principle of equal pay for work of equal value and equal opportunities at all levels of employment. Please also include data on women’s employment and wage equality, disaggregated by sector, region, caste and other relevant factors;

(b)The status of the draft national policy on domestic workers and steps taken to ensure that domestic workers are covered by labour and social protection laws, including mechanisms to prevent and redress sexual harassment under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. Please also indicate measures taken to monitor compliance and provide effective remedies for domestic workers facing violence, exploitation or abuse;

(c)Any plans and time frame for ratifying the Home Work Convention, 1996 (No. 177), and the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189), of the International Labour Organization and for aligning national legislation and labour policies with the standards set out in those instruments.

Health

16.Please provide information on:

(a)Steps taken to reduce the incidence of unsafe abortions, to decriminalize abortion in all cases and to address key legal barriers to effective access to legal abortion, including such provisions as third-party authorization requirements through medical boards under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (as amended in 2021), as well as advances in implementing World Health Organization guidelines on the provision of abortion;

(b)Progress made to decriminalize consensual sexual activity between adolescents of a similar age, especially those aged between 16 and 18 years, and to guarantee confidentiality in their access to reproductive healthcare and family planning services;

(c)Measures taken to ensure equitable, inclusive and non-discriminatory access to maternal and sexual and reproductive health services, in particular for women and girls with disabilities and from marginalized, rural and tribal communities, including measures to:

(i)Address maternal mortality and morbidity among women from marginalized groups and eradicate coercive practices, such as forced sterilizations and insertions of intrauterine contraceptive devices;

(ii)Assess the impact of mandatory pregnancy registration and informant schemes on women’s right to privacy and access to healthcare;

(iii)Promote male responsibility in family planning, including balanced levels of sterilization use among men and women;

(iv)Strengthen the awareness and training of medical and health personnel and other implementing authorities, including measures to protect and promote the role of accredited social health activists in rural areas, including tribal settlements.

Economic empowerment of women

17.Please provide information on:

(a)Steps taken to ensure gender-responsive programming in relation to the economic empowerment of women, including women belonging to disadvantaged groups, in the formulation and development of poverty reduction and eradication strategies and social safety nets for women working in the informal economy;

(b)Measures to recognize and value unpaid care work performed by women, including its consideration in pension entitlements and social benefits;

(c)Statistical data on poverty rates among women, disaggregated by age, disability status, ethnicity, minority status, geographical location, socioeconomic status and other gender-relevant indicators.

Rural women

18.Please provide information on:

(a)Progress made in abolishing discriminatory traditional practices and customary laws that restrict rural women’s rights to inherit, own and acquire land, and on measures taken to guarantee equal land and property ownership rights for women;

(b)Efforts to enhance rural women’s access to essential services and resources, including healthcare, education, safe water and sanitation, credit and income-generation opportunities, including in agriculture, and to ensure their full and effective participation in decision-making related to rural development.

Disadvantaged groups of women

Women from scheduled castes and scheduled tribes

19.Please provide information on measures taken to strengthen access to justice for Dalit women and women and girls from scheduled tribes, including through the effective implementation and monitoring of legal aid schemes, legal literacy and awareness programmes, and outreach on the available remedies for discrimination and gender-based violence. Please also include information on steps taken to raise awareness of birth registration procedures and ensure universal access to civil registration and identity documents among Dalit and Adivasi women and girls, as well as on efforts to ensure equitable access to high-quality and culturally appropriate healthcare services staffed by trained personnel for women and girls from these communities, free from stigma and discrimination.

Migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls

20.Please provide information on measures taken to ensure adherence to the principle of non-refoulement and to prevent the forced return of women and girls at risk of persecution or gender-based violence.

Women and girls with disabilities

21.Please provide information on measures taken to implement and strengthen the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, including steps to prohibit and prevent the forced sterilization, institutionalization and disability-based detention of women and girls with disabilities, and to ensure their rights to bodily autonomy, integrity and informed consent. Please also include information on efforts to enhance their participation in all decision-making processes.

Women in detention

22.Please provide information on the implementation of the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules) and any other measures to ensure gender-sensitive conditions of detention, prevent family separation and guarantee protection from violence and abuse for women in detention.

Marriage and family relations

23.In view of the Committee’s previous recommendations (para. 41), please provide information on the following:

(a)Measures to ensure uniform and compulsory registration of all marriages, including plans to withdraw the State Party’s declaration regarding article 16 (2) of the Convention, and to harmonize all marriage and family laws with the Convention;

(b)Steps taken to review the Special Marriage Act to remove procedural barriers, including the public notice requirement, and to reform laws on marital property to ensure women’s equal rights to property acquired during marriage and upon its dissolution;

(c)Assessment of the impact of the so-called anti-conversion laws on women’s autonomy and the risk of violence and discrimination for those in interfaith marriages;

(d)Steps taken to recognize same-sex marriages or unions.

Ratification of other treaties

24.Please provide information on the State Party’s timeline for ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention and accepting the amendment to article 20 (1) of the Convention, as recommended in the previous concluding observations (para. 42).

Additional information

25.Please provide any additional information deemed relevant with regard to legislative, policy, administrative and other measures taken to implement the provisions of the Convention and the Committee’s concluding observations since the consideration of the previous periodic report (CEDAW/C/IND/CO/4-5) in 2014. Such measures may include recent laws, developments, plans, programmes and ratifications of human rights instruments, as well as any other information that the State Party considers relevant. Please also provide information on the measures taken to integrate a gender perspective into all efforts aimed at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Please note that, further to the issues raised in the present document, the State Party will be expected, during the dialogue, to respond to additional questions relating to areas covered by the Convention.