The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued a temporary administrative advisory allowing select employees to work from home once a week and postponing non-essential internal events for eight weeks starting May 25. The market regulator linked the measures to the government’s call for energy conservation amid the current geopolitical situation.
Under the advisory issued by SEBI’s HR department on May 21, officers in Grades A to C, which include Assistant Manager, Manager, and Assistant General Manager positions, are permitted to work from home one day a week on a rotational basis. Officers in Grade D and above, including Deputy General Managers, will continue to attend the office physically on a regular basis.
Employees attached to the offices of the Chairman and Whole-Time Members, along with staff in the secretarial cadre, account assistants, and junior assistants, are also required to be present in the office. The advisory applies to SEBI’s headquarters, regional offices, and local offices.
Non-essential internal events that involve significant travel or hotel expenses have been postponed for the same eight-week period. SEBI has also encouraged staff to use public transport, the regulator’s subsidised bus facility, carpooling, and electric vehicles, and to avoid private vehicles where possible. Departments have been advised to conduct stakeholder meetings virtually wherever feasible.
A standard operating procedure issued alongside the advisory allows department heads to define work expectations and timelines for employees working remotely. “Employees are encouraged to make use of public transport, subsidised bus facility, carpooling, electric vehicles and avoid using private vehicles to the extent possible,” the advisory said.
The move follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal earlier this month for citizens and organisations to reduce fuel consumption and revive remote working practices in response to rising energy costs and tensions in West Asia. Crisil Ratings has projected Brent crude prices to average between $90 and $95 per barrel in FY27, around 32 per cent higher year-on-year, driven by disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz.
SEBI is not the first organisation to respond. HDFC Bank has shifted select treasury, risk management, digital banking, and IT services employees to a two-day-a-week remote model. HDFC Securities has moved to a hybrid model. Anupam Mittal’s Shaadi.com introduced a weekly work-from-home policy earlier this month, and IndusInd Bank is reportedly preparing to expand hybrid arrangements for selected roles.
The eight-week SEBI arrangement will be reviewed based on the prevailing situation. For HR leaders in banking, financial services, and capital markets, the regulator’s move is likely to influence how peer institutions design their own short-term flexibility policies.
