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News18
02-07-2025
- Business
- News18
Night Shifts For Women, 24x7 Shops, Relaxed Layoff Rules: Delhi Rolls Out Major Business Reforms
Last Updated: The decision was made during a high-level meeting chaired by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta The Delhi government has directed the Labour Department to introduce provisions allowing women to work night shifts — but strictly with their consent, officials at Raj Niwas said on Tuesday. The move is part of a wider set of sweeping reforms aimed at improving Delhi's ease of doing business climate and removing bureaucratic hurdles that have stifled economic growth. The decision was made during a high-level meeting chaired by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, where the leadership jointly reviewed the progress of key governance initiatives like 'Ease of Doing Business' and 'Maximum Governance, Minimum Government', both aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision. Observing that outdated laws and cumbersome processes had long hindered business operations in Delhi, Saxena stressed that the progress made over the past 11 years has been 'far from satisfactory." Echoing this, Chief Minister Gupta noted that the difficulty of doing business in Delhi had led many industries and enterprises to shift operations to other states, costing Delhi significant economic activity. In response, a set of comprehensive directives was issued. Key among them was the order to the Labour Department to amend the Delhi Shops and Establishments Act and issue notifications under the Factories Act, enabling women to work night shifts with their explicit consent while ensuring robust safety measures are in place. Additionally, the government instructed that the threshold for the minimum number of employees for the applicability of the Shops and Establishments Act be increased from one to 10, allowing more small businesses to operate with greater flexibility. Provisions were also approved to permit 24×7 operations for shops and establishments in the capital. Further, the threshold for mandatory permission to close businesses under the Industrial Dispute Act will be raised from 100 to 200 workers, easing the compliance burden on industries. As part of fire safety reforms, the Delhi Fire Department has been directed to empanel third-party agencies for audits. Large commercial and industrial establishments will be allowed to obtain NOCs (No Objection Certificates) based on certificates from these empanelled agencies, while smaller establishments will have the option to opt for a third-party audit. In environmental regulations, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has been instructed to expedite its processes. The time limit for issuing operational consent will be reduced to 20 days, after which the approval will be deemed granted. The DPCC has also been directed to allow self-certification for MSMEs in green and white categories and to empanel third-party agencies for this certification. Land governance also came under scrutiny. Several restrictive provisions of the Delhi Land Reforms Act, especially Sections 81 and 33, were flagged for causing serious hardships to farmers by making land transfers, sales, and mutations practically impossible. The Revenue Department has been tasked with reviewing these sections and recommending necessary amendments. To streamline approvals, the Information Technology Department was directed to develop a single-window portal that will handle all types of No Objection Certificates (NOCs) required for businesses. The Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Minister emphasized that the implementation of these reforms would be monitored closely, with regular reviews. All departments have been instructed to complete the execution of these directives within six months. First Published: July 02, 2025, 07:36 IST
Indian Express
01-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Night shifts for women, new layoff rule: Labour department in Delhi gets fresh directions
In a significant measure, the Delhi government has directed the Labour Department to make necessary changes to allow women to work in night shifts, but only with their consent, officials said on Tuesday. The Labour Department has been asked to put in place all safeguards by amending the Delhi Shops and Establishment Act and issuing notifications under the Factories Act, said officials from Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena's office. Officials said that directions were also given to amend the Delhi Shops and Establishment Act to increase the threshold of minimum number of employees from one to 10 for the applicability of the Act and to allow shops and establishments to work 24/7. The government has also given directions to 'increase the threshold of workers from 100 to 200, in the Industrial Dispute Act, for seeking permission for closure.' Explaining this further, a senior official from the Labour department said, 'Currently, if any factory or a company wants to exit the business and do layoffs, they have to seek clearance from the departments concerned and the authority. But now, if a factory has 200 or fewer employees, they don't have to seek permission for the closure of the factory and layoffs. This has been done as part of the ease of doing business…' When asked about the move's likely impact on labourers, the official said, 'The labourers will have options to approach the labour court. At present, if the company wants to exit and they don't have the profit to pay the labourers in future, there is no point. So, this is part of the ease of doing business.' Responding to this, Krishna Yadav, General Secretary of Shramik Vikas Sanghatan, said, 'If the government is allowing a factory or industry to exit the business and do layoffs without seeking permission from any authority. There should also be an act to provide compensation to the workers because they are the ones who will be affected and end up losing jobs without any employee funds or benefits.' The government issued a slew of directions, including these in a high-level meeting held by the L-G, along with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, to review the status and progress of various aspects related to the BJP government's flagship policies — 'Ease of Doing Business' and 'Maximum Governance – Minimum Government', enunciated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At the meeting, the L-G also observed that 'restrictive and archaic laws, processes, and regulatory regimes had hampered and discouraged businesses and economic activities', his office underlined in a statement. 'It was underlined by the L-G and the CM that the progress during the last 11 years was far from satisfactory….,' The meeting was also attended by Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood, Industries Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Chief Secretary Dharmendra, top police officers, and heads of all departments concerned. Meanwhile, the Fire department was asked to empanel agencies for a third-party audit. '… so that the large commercial establishments and industrial establishments are allowed to get NOC (no objection certificate) on the audit certificate of empanelled agencies. 'Small establishments may be given an option for a third-party audit. An expression of interest can be floated immediately,' said an official. The department was also asked to revisit its regulations in view of technological advancements and availability of small, drone-based and robotic firefighting equipment, which had made the existing regulations vis-à-vis the breadth of approach roads for access of fire tenders, redundant. Furthermore, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has been directed to reduce the time to give 'consent to operate to 20 days, after which it should be a deemed approval'. It has also been directed to allow self-certification for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in both green and white industries and to empanel a third-party agency for certifications. Officials said that the IT Department will make a single window portal for all kinds of NOCs.
Time of India
01-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Delhi govt directs Labour Dept to make changes to allow women to work in night shifts
The Delhi government has directed the Labour Department to make necessary changes to allow women to work in night shifts--but only with their consent, Raj Niwas officials said on Tuesday. Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena, along with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, chaired a high-level meeting on Tuesday to review the status and progress of various aspects related to the flagship schemes, 'Ease of Doing Business' and 'Maximum Governance - Minimum Government', enunciated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Restrictive and archaic laws, processes and regulatory regimes had hampered and discouraged businesses and economic activities, Saxena observed. Saxena and Gupta asserted that progress during the last 11 years was "far from satisfactory". Difficulty in doing business had led to a situation wherein, industries and businesses had shifted to other states at the cost of Delhi, Gupta said. Live Events A slew of directions were issued to re-engineer the government processes. The Labour Department was directed to take immediate steps to allow women employees to work in night shifts, after taking their consent and also ensure all safeguards by amending the Delhi Shops and Establishment Act and by issuing suitable notifications under the Factories Act, the official said. The department was also directed to amend Delhi Shops and Establishment Act to increase the threshold of the minimum number of employees from one to 10 for applicability of the Act and to allow shops/establishments to work 24x7. Directions were also issued to increase the threshold of workers from 100 to 200 in the Industrial Dispute Act for seeking permission for closure, the official added. The Delhi Fire Department was asked to empanel agencies for a third party audit. "Large commercial and industrial establishments may be allowed to get NOC on audit certificate of empanelled agencies. Small establishments may be given an option for third-party audit. An expression of interest can be floated immediately," the official said. It was also stressed that the Delhi Pollution Control Committee should reduce the time to give consent to operate to 20 days, after which it should be a deemed approval. "DPCC should allow self-certification for MSME in both green and white industries. It may empanel third-party agencies for certifications," he added. Several sections and provisions of the Delhi Land Reforms Act, including Section 81 and 33, being implemented by the Revenue Department, were proving to be detrimental to farmers in the city, by way of making transfer, sale of land and mutation almost impossible, the official said, adding the department was asked to take a fresh look at the Act and specific provisions. The Information Technology Department was instructed to make a single-window portal for all kind of NOCs. It was decided that the implementation of these directions will be reviewed on a regular basis by the LG or the chief minister and should be completed within six months, the official said.
