Parliament Question: Mental health and wellness leave policies

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1168 ANSWERED ON TUESDAY, FEBURARY 10, 2026 MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS LEAVE POLICIES QUESTION 1168. Shri Kartikeya Sharma: Will the Minister of CORPORATE AFFAIRS be pleased to state: (a) whether Government maintains or has commissioned any data or studies on the adoption of mental health and wellness leave policies by companies registered under the Companies Act, 2013, including sector-wise or size-wise trends; (b) whether any review has been undertaken to assess the impact of existing corporate governance and labour frameworks on work-life balance, employee stress levels and productivity outcomes; and (c) the details of advisories, circulars or guidelines issued during the last five years to promote healthy work environments, including measures for burnout prevention, stress management and employee well-being? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ROAD, TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS [SHRI HARSH MALHOTRA] (a): The Companies Act, 2013 (the Act) regulates the incorporation and working of companies in India, including inter alia aspects like capital raising, restructuring, winding up and corporate governance. The adoption of mental health and wellness leave policies of companies is not within the remit of the Act. (b) and (c): This Ministry has not conducted any review, or issued any advisories, circulars or guidelines in this matter. As per the information received from the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the working conditions in most of the establishments, including those in private and corporate sector, are governed by the Shops and Establishments Acts, for which the appropriate government is the State Government. Further, the Central Government has enacted the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH&WC) Code, 2020, which has beenenforced on 21.11.2025, to regulate the occupational safety, health and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The Code also provides for enforcement mechanisms through the appropriate authorities for ensuring compliance with its provisions. ******