-The Hindu Business Line By trying to appear more women-friendly than is necessary, the law may deter industry from employing women altogether The amendment to the maternity Bill, long overdue, calls for some serious reconsideration due to its skewed philosophy. While the most prominent flaw is its emphasis on employees in the new-age services sector, there are several other shortcomings. What is wrong Firstly, the need for expansion of the existing benefit lacks scientific basis....
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Supporting motherhood
-The Hindu Business Line The effectiveness of the revised Maternity Benefit Act depends on its proper implementation India now lags only Canada and Norway in the level of Maternity Benefits such as paid time off work extended to women. India’s statutory maternity leave is now the third best in the world and is certainly something to be proud of. However, the law is no assurance that the situation of working women will...
More »Paid maternity leave extended to 26 weeks
-The Hindu For the third child, the maternity leave entitlement will only be for 12 weeks. Calling it a ‘humble gift’ to women in India, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya welcomed the Parliament nod to the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016. Women working in the organised sector will now be entitled to paid maternity leave of 26 weeks, up from 12 weeks. The bill will benefit about 1.8 million women. The new law will...
More »Budget 2017 Disappoints, Maternity Benefit Programme Underfunded, Excludes Those Who Need It The Most -Dipa Sinha
-NDTV According to the World Health Statistics (2016), nearly 5 women die every hour in India due to pregnancy and delivery related complications. 17 per cent of maternal deaths in the world occur in India. Based on the data from the Rapid Survey on Children (2013), only 65 per cent of children are exclusively breastfed up to six months of age. Infant and child mortality rates are high as well. Child...
More »Pregnant Women Entitled to Rs 6,000: Maternity scheme gets Rs 2,700 crore, experts say not enough - Shalini Nair
-The Indian Express The scheme grants Rs 6,000 to pregnant and lactating women who go for institutional delivery and vaccinate their children. The much-talked about Maternity Benefit entitlement of Rs 6,000 per woman, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 31, 2016, has received a meagre allocation of Rs 2,700 crore. This is not even a quarter of the estimate drawn up by civil society groups that have been long demanding...
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