16 Days, 365 Demands: What Campus Anti-Violence Drives Are Actually Changing

Every year between 25 November and 10 December, university campuses and offices across India suddenly turn orange.

- TDG NETWORK

Banners call for ending gender-based violence, and one-day workshops on consent and safety proliferate. This year, the University Grants Commission (UGC) went further: its 5 December 2025 advisory mandated all higher-education institutions to observe “16 Days of Activism for Ending Gender-Based Violence” and to submit action-taken reports by 25 December 2025. The directive spells out activities ranging from workshops on the Domestic Violence Act and the POSH Act, to social media campaigns about helplines and “Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat”. It also urges institutions to raise awareness about the government's Sexual Harassment electronic (SHe) Box portal and to sensitise men and boys strengthening the Internal Complaints Committees (ICCs) mandated by the POSH Act. A post-event survey at a large private university found that while 78 % of women felt the workshops increased awareness, only 22% believed the institution would respond effectively to a complaint.