India plans to ease WFH rules for special economic zones

India’s Commerce and Industry Ministry is reportedly preparing to roll out standard operating procedures that would need IT companies to provide a complete list of staff that will work remotely.

Speaking to India’s Economic Times, an official related to the matter said, “The IT industry wanted a complete relaxation from rule 43(A) without any compliance and insisted on total self-declaration, while the developers argued that 100% work from home would mean wastage of the infrastructure developed in SEZs.”

Moreover, the official revealed that there were intense negotiations between the parties for two weeks and now deliberations are underway to simplify the processes.

The commerce ministry had recently asked units in a SEZ which want to permit work-from-home (WFH) for employees to formulate a scheme and get approval from the development commissioners concerned.

READ: Majority of young workers in India look to upskill

In July, the government allowed WFH for a maximum period of one year in a SEZ unit. The facility can be extended to 50% of total employees, according to India.com.