India, May 13 -- A study published in The Lancet has found that nearly 32% girls and 13.5% of boys (under 18 years of age for both sexes) in India have suffered sexual violence (unwanted physical sexual acts). This is higher than the global average of 19% for girls and 15% for boys though it isn't very different from many high-income countries such as the US, France, New Zealand, and Australia. Read along with the fact that many other jurisdictions with less strident protection frameworks - some of them conflict zones reporting crises of child trafficking - throw up lower prevalence, this could also indicate robust reporting in India. India's legal protections and remedies concerning sexual violence against minors, including the 2012 Pocso Act, have plugged several gaps. However, many remain, including recognising certain forms of sexual violence that may not be as explicit as others, sensitisation of government personnel on handling such cases, etc. The legislature, executive, and judiciary, all have a role in addressing these gaps. An effective response to curb prevalence has to be systemic - one that includes a prevention-focus through awareness and sensitisation - rather than standalone State measures. This calls for open conversations on sexual violence, destigmatising disclosure and reporting, and engendering behaviour early on that is sensitive to gender and sexual violence. To illustrate, a badly needed intervention among adolescents and youth today is correcting skewed notions of gender, especially masculinity and the so-called incel culture which has spread worldwide, thanks to social media. Without societal corrections, governance measures will always fall short here....