Rule 14 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Rule 14 tells the committee what its annual report must contain. It lists five details: complaints received, complaints disposed of, cases pending for more than ninety days, workshops or awareness programmes carried out, and the nature of action taken by the employer or the District Officer. It prints no date and no form. If you have to prepare the report, our labour law compliance service can help.
The annual report which the committee prepares under section 21 "shall have the following details": (a) complaints received in the year; (b) complaints disposed of in the year; (c) cases pending for more than ninety days; (d) workshops or awareness programmes carried out; and (e) the nature of action taken by the employer or District Officer. Rule 14 prints no date and no form.
Source and names
This article follows the copy of the Rules consulted (the Rules as notified on 9 December 2013, G.S.R. 769(E)); check the current Rules. The Rules implement the Act, cited from the consolidated text consulted (it shows one amendment, Act 23 of 2016, with effect from 6 May 2016); later amendments and notifications should be checked. The Rule uses "Complaints Committee", which Rule 2(c) defines as the Internal Committee or the Local Committee. Section 21 is explained in our article on section 21.
The section behind the rule
Section 21(1) provides that the committee shall "in each calendar year prepare, in such form and at such time as may be prescribed, an annual report and submit the same to the employer and the District Officer". Section 29(2)(m) lists "the form and time for preparation of annual report" as a rule-making head. Rule 14 is the only rule on the subject in the copy consulted.
The text of Rule 14
Rule 14 is headed "Preparation of annual report". It reads: "The annual report which the Complaints Committee shall prepare under Section 21, shall have the following details:-"
| Item | Detail as printed |
|---|---|
| (a) | number of complaints of sexual harassment received in the year |
| (b) | number of complaints disposed off during the year |
| (c) | number 61 cases pending for more than ninety days |
| (d) | number of workshops or awareness programme against sexual harassment carried out |
| (e) | nature of action taken by the employer or District Officer |
The printing slip in clause (c)
The copy prints "number 61 cases pending for more than ninety days". The sense is plainly "number of cases", and the "61" is a printing slip. We flag it and do not treat "61" as a figure. The only figure in the clause is "ninety days".
Item by item
(a) and (b): complaints received and disposed of
These are counts for "the year". Item (a) counts complaints of sexual harassment received; item (b) counts complaints disposed off during the year. The Rule does not define "disposed off" and does not say whether a complaint received in one year and disposed in the next is counted in both. We say no more than the text does. A register kept by the committee with the date of receipt and date of disposal for each complaint will answer both items.
(c): cases pending for more than ninety days
The clause links to the ninety-day period in section 11(4), which says the inquiry shall be completed within a period of ninety days; see Inquiry Process Under POSH Act, Section 11. The Rule does not say from what date the ninety days are counted for this item, and we do not say.
(d): workshops or awareness programmes
This item counts the "workshop or awareness programme against sexual harassment carried out". It ties to the employer's duty under section 19(c) and Rule 13; see our article on Rule 13. Because the report is the committee's, the committee needs the employer to share the programme record with it.
(e): nature of action taken
This item asks for the nature of action taken "by the employer or District Officer". That links to the recommendations of the committee under section 13 and the sixty days for action under section 13(4); see section 13. It is the only item in the list that depends on someone other than the committee, so the committee will need information from the employer or the District Officer.
What Rule 14 does not say
- Date. No date or period of submission is printed.
- Form. No form or format is printed.
- Named signatory. None is printed.
- Where the District Officer's brief report fits. Section 21(2) covers it; Rule 14 does not.
- Penalty. None is printed in the Rule.
Section 21(1) says form and time are "as may be prescribed". Since Rule 14 gives neither, the position on those two points is open in the copy consulted. We give no date or form. Check the current Rules and any current instruction before you fix your calendar.
How it fits with section 22
The employer has a separate duty under section 22 to include the number of cases filed, if any, and their disposal in the annual report of the organisation, or where no such report is required to be prepared, to intimate the number of cases, if any, to the District Officer. That is explained in the post Annual Return Under POSH Act, Section 22. For the company-law side, see our guide on disclosure in the board report for POSH. Rule 14 governs only the committee's report.
An example
At the end of a calendar year, the Presiding Officer of an Internal Committee, Anita, sits with the committee's register and the HR file. She records: the number of complaints received during the year; the number disposed of; the number of cases pending for more than ninety days; the number of workshops and awareness programmes carried out, taken from the HR training record; and the nature of the action the employer took on each recommendation. She submits the report to the employer and the District Officer, as section 21(1) requires. Because the Rules copy prints no form, she presents the five items in a simple table and notes the printing slip in clause (c) in her covering note.
Need help preparing the annual report?
Keeping a running register through the year makes the report a matter of totalling rather than reconstruction. Our labour law compliance team can help you set up the register and prepare the report in a clear format.
Key takeaways
- Rule 14 lists five details for the committee's annual report under section 21.
- They are: complaints received, complaints disposed of, cases pending for more than ninety days, workshops or awareness programmes, and action taken by the employer or District Officer.
- The copy prints "number 61 cases" in clause (c); this is a printing slip.
- Rule 14 prints no date and no form.
- Section 22 is the employer's separate duty on case numbers.
Read next
- Section 21 of the POSH Act, 2013: annual report of the committee
- Rule 13 of the POSH Rules, 2013: workshops, awareness programmes and internal policy
- Section 19 of the POSH Act, 2013: duties of employer
- Disclosure in Board Report: POSH Compliance
Disclaimer: Based on a consolidated text of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 showing one amendment (Act 23 of 2016, 6 May 2016) and on a copy of the Rules of 2013 as notified on 9 December 2013, as consulted on 2 October 2026. Later amendments, State rules and notifications, and the position under the Labour Codes in force from 21 November 2025 should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.