- Why in news
- On 6 February 2026, the Women and Child Development Minister told Lok Sabha that the Government is keeping the age of consent at eighteen years under POCSO and other laws.
- What it is
- The POCSO Act, 2012 is a special law to protect children from sexual assault, harassment and pornography. It defines a child as anyone below eighteen and prescribes graded punishments. It is backed by the POCSO Rules, 2020, which set child-friendly procedures.
- Definition of child
- The Act treats any person below eighteen years as a child.
- 2019 amendment
- The 2019 amendment made penalties harsher, including the death penalty for certain aggravated sexual offences against children.
- Consent
- The Act does not define consent. Any sexual act with a person under eighteen is an offence, even if consent was given.
- POCSO Rules, 2020
- The Ministry of Women and Child Development notified the Rules to strengthen implementation through child-friendly procedures.
- International link
- The child definition conforms to Article 1 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Don’t confuse with POCSO Act vs Juvenile Justice Act, 2015: POCSO punishes sexual offences against children. The JJ Act deals with children in conflict with law and children in need of care and protection. Both use eighteen as the age limit.
Don’t confuse with Age of consent vs age of marriage: The age of consent for sexual acts is eighteen. The legal minimum age of marriage is a separate rule under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006.
Laws, judgments and statutory bodies: 30 Prelims questions since 2013 (what the law says, who chairs, legal basis). In Mains, 44 news-triggered questions, most in GS2, asking for provisions and challenges.
Why it matters
- A uniform age of eighteen across laws gives a coherent legal framework and guards minors from coercion and exploitation.
Problems
- Consensual relations between adolescents can be criminalised, which critics say leads to misuse of the law.
Way forward
- Use judicial discretion and sensitisation of police and courts, and strengthen adolescent education, while keeping the protective age intact.
Put in your answer
Uniform age of majority: Eighteen is fixed across the BNS, POCSO, the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and the Juvenile Justice Act, giving consistency.
Government's stand on dilution: The Government argues that exceptions to the age of consent would raise exploitation risks, especially for adolescent girls.
- 2025Mains GS2 · Q18Examine policies and measures for child rights challenges in the digital era
- 2016Mains GS2 · Q15Examine main provisions of National Child Policy and its implementation status
- 2014Mains GS4 · Q8Suggest innovative measures against rising sexual violence despite existing legal provisions
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting law with age-of-consent debate; laws are 35 of 161 news-set Mains questions, but this reply is routine, so card only.
Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.