Maternity Benefit Act
Also: Maternity Benefit Act 1961, maternity leave law, Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017
Background and evolution
Protection for working mothers in India dates to colonial-era provincial laws, starting with Bombay in 1929, which offered limited leave to women in factories. The International Labour Organization adopted its first Maternity Protection Convention in 1919. After independence, Article 42 of the Constitution directed the state to make provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief. Parliament passed the Maternity Benefit Act in 1961 to provide a uniform national standard, covering factories, mines, plantations and later shops and establishments with ten or more workers.
The Act originally provided twelve weeks of paid leave. Over time, research on infant health highlighted the value of exclusive breastfeeding for six months, and many countries extended leave. The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017 raised leave to 26 weeks for women with fewer than two surviving children, introduced leave for adoptive and commissioning mothers, required creches in larger establishments, and allowed work from home where the nature of work permits. The Act has since been folded into the Code on Social Security, 2020, one of four new labour codes brought into force in 2025.
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Last reviewed: 23 October 2026 · Original UPSCPrep.in content.