18 years
The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, came into force on 14th November 2012. Under the Act, a child is defined as any person below the age of 18 and makes it gender-neutral. More importantly, it provides precise definitions for different forms of sexual abuse, including penetrative and non-penetrative sexual assault, sexual harassment and pornography. The Act provides for stringent punishment, graded as per the gravity of the offence, with a maximum term of rigorous imprisonment for life for certain offences.