Observing that issues pertaining to women and children need to be handled with a humanitarian approach, the Bombay High Court today directed the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation to consider the issue of implementation of childcare leave.

A division bench of Justices V M Kanade and G S Kulkarni was hearing a petition filed by S Mangala, Deputy General Manager (Aviation Safety), Airports Authority of India (AAI) seeking implementation of childcare leave as recommended in the Sixth Pay Commission in 2008.

Mangala approached the high court after her request for leave to attend to her 12-year-old daughter with a learning disability was rejected by AAI.

According to her petition, the Union government had in September 2008 introduced child care leave on recommendation of the Sixth Pay Commission. Under child care leave, a woman employee can take up to two years paid leave until the child is of 18 years age.

“Such matters should be dealt with much more sensitivity. You (Union government) should take a humanitarian approach. Come back with a positive decision,” the bench said today while giving the union ministry four weeks time to consider the issue.

According to the petition, the central government order has three paragraphs — one about increasing maternity leave from 135 days to 180 days, one about increasing from one to two years the existing provision of availing other leave in continuation with the maternity leave and the last one is about child care leave.

However, the AAI in March 2011 implemented only the first paragraph of the order but not the other two.

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