Sebi continues with pro-employee measures, plans holiday home tie-up

Continuing with its pro-employee initiatives, Sebi plans to rope in an agency to provide holiday home facility to the markets regulator for its annual requirement of 10,000 room nights on pan-India basis for its staff.

Earlier in October, Sebi had invited applications to hire an agency for providing gym instructors and trainers as well as a firm to supply flowers and look after floral managements at its office.

The markets watchdog, which has been taking several pro-staff initiatives, has now invited "Expression of Interest from reputed, well established entities or agencies having hotels or resorts at tourist destinations in India to provide holiday home facility to Sebi".

Spelling out the eligibility criteria, the regulator said the agencies should have a minimum experience of three years in hospitality business -- owning and running hotel chains and resorts.

The applicant agencies should necessarily have their well-established resorts or hotels with all modern facilities at at least 10 locations from the 24 locations, including Srinagar, Mussoorie, Amritsar, Delhi, Mumbai, Ooty, Goa, Gangtok, Darjeeling, Lonavala, Mysore, Hyderabad, Bhubaneshwar, Kolkata and Pune.

The properties offered at each location should be near the tourist attraction in such destinations and should have facilities like restaurant, fitness centre, laundry and room service among others.

"Preference would be given to properties having amenities such as indoor games, swimming pool, health club etc," the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said in a notice.

The regulator said that the properties should be available throughout the year for the employees of Sebi.

Interested agencies will have to send application to Sebi by January 17, 2020.

Among other pro-staff measures, Sebi in 2015 had introduced ''special hardship leave'' for up to two years for female employees once they complete five years of service.

A female employee may avail special hardship leave as extension of maternity leave irrespective of completion of service of five years with the regulator.

The ''special hardship leave'' can be applied for the purposes of taking care of family or children or on health grounds of self or dependent family members.

In 2013, Sebi board had introduced paternity leave for male employees.