Tamil Nadu women govt employees to get year-long maternity leave for third child
The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday (August 18) announced that maternity leave for women government employees for the birth of their third child will be extended from 12 weeks to 365 days. The revised provision will bring the maternity leave available for a third child in line with the 365-day leave currently granted for the first two children.
At present, married women government employees with fewer than two surviving children are entitled to 365 days of maternity leave, while those with two or more surviving children are eligible for up to 12 weeks of maternity leave.
Year-long maternity leave for third child
During the demand for grants for his department in the state Assembly, Human Resources Management Minister D Sarathkumar announced that maternity leave for women government employees for the birth of a third child would be increased from 12 weeks to 365 days.
“As the Tamil Nadu government is a welfare-oriented administration that prioritises social welfare and women’s empowerment, the maternity leave currently provided for the third child of female government employees will be enhanced from 12 weeks to 365 days,” Sarathkumar said.
The original 90 days of maternity leave was raised to six months in 2011, nine months in 2016, and extended to one year (365 days) in July 2021 by the respective state governments of the day, led by the AIADMK and the DMK.
Under the existing eligibility framework, the 365-day maternity leave benefit applies to regular women government employees with fewer than two surviving children, a government source said.
However, following directions from the Supreme Court and subsequent amendments by the state government, women government employees with two or more surviving children continue to be entitled to 12 weeks, or 84 days, of maternity leave with full pay.
A senior government official said a detailed government order would soon be issued to formally implement the announcement made in the Assembly.
Tamil Nadu makes state anthem mandatory as first song
Earlier on August 12, the Tamil Nadu government had made ‘Tamil Thai Vazhthu’, the state’s official song, mandatory as the first song to be sung at government events and official programmes across the state. The directive applies to programmes held at educational institutions, universities, government offices, public sector undertakings and other public organisations.
The official order comes days after a resolution unanimously passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly on August 10, making the song mandatory to sing first at the beginning of any government event.
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay moved the resolution in the Assembly, saying the state song should be accorded the highest priority in Tamil Nadu. The move is being seen as a challenge to the Centre’s directive to play ‘Vande Mataram’ first in the sequence of songs at government events.
