Night Shift Transport Rules for Women Employees, by State

Indian law now lets women work night shifts in most states. The permission comes with conditions, and many of those conditions are about the ride home. If your company keeps women on duty late, the cab is no longer just an admin cost. It is part of how you stay within the law. This page sets out what seven states ask for, based on their notifications and on summaries by law firms.

Last reviewed 28 October 2026

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Read this before you rely on it

This is not legal advice

Night shift rules differ between shops and establishments, factories and IT units, and states revise them often. Several conditions here come from law firm summaries rather than the gazette text. Treat this page as a starting point for a conversation with your legal or compliance team, and check the current notification for your state and type of establishment before you act on it.

Two things apply wherever you are. Section 43 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 allows women to work at night with their consent. Rule 83 of the Central Rules, notified in May 2026, says the employer must give pickup and drop at the residence, with emergency numbers displayed inside the vehicles used.

Then there is the POSH Act, 2013. It counts transport provided by the employer as part of the workplace. In plain terms, the company cab is your office for the length of the ride.

State by state

Haryana (Gurugram, Faridabad)

A notification of May 2025 lets IT, ITES, banking, logistics and some other establishments employ women from 8 pm to 6 am. The employer needs an exemption from the Labour Commissioner, valid for one year. Transport conditions: pickup from home and drop back home, security guards in the vehicle including a female guard, well trained drivers, CCTV and GPS. A woman can choose not to use company transport by giving written consent. The notification also allows employers to pool transport through tie-ups with outside transporters.

Delhi

Notifications issued in 2025 and the Delhi Shops and Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2026 allow women to work at night with their consent, subject to CCTV, security and transport. The Act also prescribes conditions for night work. We have not set out the exact hours and the full list here; read the current Act and notification for your establishment.

Uttar Pradesh (Noida, Ghaziabad)

Factories: since a May 2022 order, women can work from 7 pm to 6 am only with written consent. The employer gives free transport from home to work and back, with supervision on the way. A February 2024 notification set the minimum night batch at three women and asked for CCTV and GPS in the transport.
Shops and commercial establishments: the UP amendment to the shops law, deemed in force from 19 November 2025, lets women work 7 pm to 6 am with consent, if the employer provides safety measures and adequate transport. The detailed conditions vary, so check the current text.

Karnataka (Bengaluru)

The 2020 amendment to the Karnataka Shops and Commercial Establishments Act allows night shifts for women only with free home-to-office transport, with security and GPS. No woman should be picked up first or dropped last. The employer needs enough security guards and a control room or travel desk tracking the vehicles, and must collect bio-data and run background checks on every driver, outsourced drivers included. Exact hours and any later changes should be checked in the current notification.

Telangana (Hyderabad)

Women can be employed between 8:30 pm and 6 am only with free transport both ways, with security and GPS. If a woman is the first pickup or last drop, a security guard has to be in the vehicle. Drivers need bio-data and background screening before they start, and vehicles can be checked at random. The employer runs a control room or travel desk, keeps employees' personal details private, and has at least five women working together at night.

Maharashtra (Mumbai, Pune)

Rule 13 of the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Rules, 2018 allows women to work between 9:30 pm and 7 am with consent, if the employer gives safe, separate transport up to the doorstep. Night workers need police verification. Where ten or more women work at night, women security guards are required, and helpline numbers must be on display. Amendment rules in 2025 reportedly add transport from home and back, CCTV recordings kept for 45 days and at least two women on duty. Confirm those against the notified text.

Tamil Nadu (Chennai)

For shops and establishments, a notification renewed from 5 June 2025 for three years keeps women off work after 8 pm in normal cases. With written consent they can work 8 pm to 6 am, if the employer protects their dignity and safety. The employer must arrange transport for women on shifts and put up a notice at the main entrance saying transport is available. Factories follow Rule 84B of the Tamil Nadu Factories Rules, which asks for separate safe transport to the nearest point of each woman's home and women security at entry and exit.

Other states have moved too. Gujarat, for one, amended its shops law with effect from December 2025, and draft rules there were still pending when we last checked. If your office is outside these seven states, start from your state labour department's latest notification.

Side by side

Summary only. Hours and conditions differ by type of establishment; read the source before acting.
State	Key transport conditions	Source
Haryana	8 pm to 6 am. Home pickup and drop, guards including a female guard, trained drivers, CCTV, GPS. Outside transporters allowed	AZB & Partners; Haryana Gazette 83-2025
Delhi	Consent, CCTV, security and transport under 2025 notifications and the 2026 Amendment Act. Check the Act for hours	Lexplosion; Business Standard
Uttar Pradesh	7 pm to 6 am with consent. Free transport both ways; factories need CCTV and GPS in transport and a batch of at least three women	greytHR; Khaitan & Co; People Matters
Karnataka	Free home-office transport with security and GPS. No woman first pickup or last drop. Guards, control room, checks on all drivers	AZB & Partners; Simpliance
Telangana	8:30 pm to 6 am. Free transport with security and GPS. Guard if a woman is first or last. Driver screening, control room, at least five women	greytHR; TeamLease RegTech
Maharashtra	9:30 pm to 7 am with consent. Safe, separate doorstep transport, police verification, women guards where ten or more women work	JSA; SGCMS; BMC Rule 13 form
Tamil Nadu	8 pm to 6 am with written consent. Employer arranges transport and posts a notice at the entrance. Factories: Rule 84B	IndiaLaw; Prosperiti

What this means for your cab vendor

The rules are addressed to you, but most of them are carried out by whoever runs the cabs. Turn each condition into a line in the vendor contract.

GPS and panic button. Public service vehicles already need an AIS-140 tracker and emergency button under CMVR Rule 125H. Ask who monitors them at 2 am.
Routing. The roster should be built so a woman is not the first pickup or last drop. Where a route cannot avoid it, a guard rides along.
Guards. Who supplies them, whether a female guard is available where your state asks for one, and how a guard no-show is handled.
Drivers. Background checks and police verification, renewed on a schedule, for every driver including the relief ones.
CCTV. Where it is required, how long the footage is kept and how you get it.
Drop confirmation. Every night drop confirmed and logged, not assumed.

Our employee transport vendor checklist covers the rest of the contract.

Records worth keeping

If an inspector or an internal audit asks how you meet the conditions, a policy document will not be enough. You will want evidence from actual nights. Keep:

Signed consent from each woman on night duty, and any written opt-out from company transport.
Your exemption or registration under the state law, with its validity date.
Daily rosters showing pickup and drop order.
GPS trip records and drop confirmations.
Guard deployment for each route that needed one.
Driver verification records, with dates.

A vendor who sends this as a monthly pack, alongside the invoice, makes your audit much shorter.

Frequently asked questions

Is a company cab part of the workplace under the POSH Act?

Yes. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013 treats transport provided by the employer as part of the workplace. A complaint about a driver or a co-passenger in a company cab goes to your Internal Committee like any other workplace complaint.

Do we still need to give transport if a woman employee says she will travel on her own?

It depends on the state. Haryana's 2025 notification, for example, lets a woman opt out of company transport by giving written consent. Other states word it differently. Keep a signed record either way, and check the notification that applies to your establishment.

Can we outsource night shift transport to a vendor?

Yes. Haryana's notification expressly allows tie-ups with outside transporters, and most companies across India run night transport through vendors. The conditions are still placed on you as the employer, so the vendor contract should spell out guards, GPS, CCTV, routing and records.

What does 'no woman first pickup or last drop' mean in practice?

Routes are planned so a woman is never alone in the cab with the driver at the start or end of a route. Where that cannot be avoided, Karnataka and Telangana ask for a security guard in the vehicle. Routing software and the transport desk usually handle this when the roster is made.

Which rule applies if our office is in one state and employees live in another?

The night shift conditions are tied to your establishment, so the starting point is the law of the state where the office is registered, even for employees who live across the border. Cabs crossing state lines also need permits that cover those routes. Confirm the position for your own setup with counsel.

Need night shift cabs that meet your state's rules?

Tell us the office location, shift timings and how many women are on night duty. Our cabs carry AIS-140 GPS with an emergency button and police-verified drivers.

Fill the enquiry form Email hello@corporatecarrent.com

Sources

Rules and figures on this page come from these official notifications, laws and reports. Check the current position for your own case.