According to a Government Resolution (GR) issued on Friday, employees in districts where polling will be held on Tuesday, December 2, are entitled to paid leave to exercise their franchise
The Maharashtra government has announced a paid holiday on December 2 for voting. Representational Pic/File/iStock
The Maharashtra government has announced a paid holiday on December 2 for employees across various establishments and workplaces to enable them to vote in the elections to municipal councils and nagar panchayats, reported the PTI.
According to a Government Resolution (GR) issued on Friday, employees in districts where polling will be held on Tuesday, December 2, are entitled to paid leave to exercise their franchise.
Voting for 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats, spread across Maharashtra, will take place in the first phase of the long-delayed urban and rural local body elections.
The Industries, Energy and Labour Departments stated that the decision aims to ensure every eligible citizen is able to vote. The GR noted that, during previous elections, some establishments had failed to provide paid leave or adequate time-off, preventing many people from casting their vote, according to the PTI.
The GR also cited provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which mandate that employers must grant paid leave to voters on polling day.
The directive will apply to all workers, employees and officers who are registered voters in the polling areas, regardless of whether their place of work lies within or outside the constituency.
Establishments under the Maharashtra Labour Department -- including factories, shops, hotels, commercial establishments, IT firms, malls and retail outlets -- must comply with the norms issued through the GR, it stated.
Units providing essential or continuous services must grant two to three hours of special leave if granting a full-day holiday is not feasible, the GR added, as per the PTI.
The Maharashtra government has warned that any failure to provide paid leave or adequate time-off will attract action if complaints are lodged.
The state government's GR also includes a detailed list of the municipal councils and nagar panchayats across the state where polling will take place on December 2.
Earlier, the election commission had announced that the first phase of polls will be followed by elections to 336 Panchayat Samitis, 32 Zilla Parishads and 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai, for which the schedule is yet to be announced by the State Election Commission.
(with PTI inputs)
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