The Times of India reports that Tamil Nadu has recorded the highest number of cases of sexual harassment of women in 2014, as per data from the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Reports ToI,

The data given in response to a question posed in the Lok Sabha during August this year shows that there were 469 sexual harassment cases across the country in 2014, of which 157 were recorded in Tamil Nadu, accounting for close to 30% of the cases. But many say that Tamil Nadu workplaces are no less safe for women than any other state. “With our large industrial base em ploying women in large numbers it is possible that the numbers can be high here. But they should be equally high in other industrialised states like Maharashtra and Gujarat,” an industrialist from Coimbatore said.

However, the reason could also be that organizations and the police are more willing to register cases in the state.

While businessmen and police feel that the high numbers are because of more cases being registered, women activists reported believe there is still a long way to go.

Meanwhile, speaking at the 12th convocation of Amrita University in Coimbatore on Monday, Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan said that there was lack of values among professionals in the country and that workplaces were bereft of values. “We have produced a host of doctors and engineers. But our basic problem lies in lack of commitment to values,'' he said. There was a time when the country produced quality doctors and engineers. But a certain lackadaisical attitude has crept into the work place, he added.