Duty over maternity leave: IAS officer resumes work 14 days after delivery

Saumya Pandey, nodal officer for COVID-19 in Ghaziabad district since July, resumed her duties only 14 days after giving birth to a girl child. The Modinagar sub-divisional magistrate cut short her maternity leave and attended office with her newborn.

A video showing Pandey working at her desk, carrying the three-week-old in her lap went viral on the internet. Though some netizens praised, others schooled her for the actions. People lauded her for her dedication and others called her irresponsible for putting life of a child in risk in times of a pandemic.

The video posted on Twitter by a Dr Prashanth, featured Saumya Pandey talking about her responsibilities towards the society.

“@IASassociation Soumya Pandey (SDM Modinagar) didn’t avail 6 months maternity leave, joined back office with her infant daughter,” Dr Prashanth said in the caption of his post.

She said, “I am an IAS officer so I have to a responsibility towards my service. Our responsibilities have doubled due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.”

Talking about resuming the work so early, she said, “God has given women the strength to give birth to a child and care for the child. In rural India, pregnant women do work in farms, take care of their household and after delivery resume the work. Similarly, it is God’s blessing that I am able to do my administrative work with my two-week old girl child.” 

The video received more than 55 thousand views as more than 630 people liked it.

Meanwhile, various users criticised her actions and asking her to keep the child’s safety before her’s.

“Stop being stupid & exposing the child to infections while pandemic rages through the world. Stop this kind of pressure on new mothers. Maternity leave is a necessity not a luxury. She will find out when child needs breast feeding every couple of hours in middle of her ‘work’,” a Twitter user wrote.

“My family has supported me lot in this. My whole Tehsil and Ghaziabad district administration, which is like a family to me supported me during the pregnancy and post-delivery. District Magistrate and administration’s staff supported me throughout my pregnancy period as well as after my delivery,” Saumya said.

“From July to September, I was appointed as the nodal officer for COVID care in Ghaziabad. In September I took 22 days leave during my operation. Two weeks after the delivery, I joined the Tehsil. Every pregnant woman should take necessary precautions while working during COVID-19 pandemic,” she added.