Indian cos issue work-from-home, travel advisories as tensions with Pak mount

With the northern region emerging as the primary site of conflict, some firms have established task forces to track employee locations and monitor the status of their operations there.

“All our staff in Gurgaon, Delhi, Noida and Jaipur have been advised to exercise caution and they may choose to work from the office, home, or client location today, in consultation with their respective business managers. Our offices will, however, remain open to support critical business needs,” said KPMG in response to an emailed query from Mint. “….in the light of the current situation resulting in disruption of flight schedules and closure of airports, especially in the northern and western part of the country, the firm is requesting its people to reschedule any travel plans till 16th May 2025, unless it is necessary,” the consulting and audit firm added.

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Mint has learnt that EY has declared work from home for employees working in Delhi, NCR, Chandigarh, Jaipur and Ahmedabad offices for Friday. EY had not responded to Mint’s queries till press time.

Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated sharply since the Indian armed forces launched precision strikes on terror infrastructure earlier this week in response to the deadly attack by Pakistan-sponsored terrorists in Pahalgam on 22 April that left 26 tourists dead.

India has also closed over two dozens airports to civilian traffic, anticipating possible escalations. The Indian Premier League (IPL) was also “temporarily suspended” earlier on Friday, keeping in mind the escalating tensions between the two countries.

“The safety and well-being of our teams is a top priority. We are closely monitoring developments, and have advised our people to exercise caution and use their best judgment when considering travel at this time. We have asked them to prioritize their safety and work from home when necessary,” a Vodafone Idea spokesperson said.

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Mint reported this week that the department of telecommunications (DoT) along with the telecom operators are evaluating measures to enhance telecom security infrastructure in border and sensitive areas. At the direction of defence ministry, operators have been directed to ensure disaster-level preparedness, and maintain uninterrupted telecom connectivity across the country, officials said.

Energy firm Vedanta Group has asked employees not to travel to its sites in Barmer (Rajasthan) and in Punjab unless essential. “We have formed a task force across the group that is reporting to the CEO so that we can look into the safety of our employees,” said Praveen Purohit, deputy chief human resources officer at Vedanta Group.

Tata Communications said it too implemented precautionary measures to safeguard its employees while ensuring uninterrupted services for customers.

“Employees located near border areas or sensitive zones — particularly in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and other identified high-risk regions — have been advised to work from home until further notice. All other employees are encouraged to limit non-essential travel and commute only during daylight hours for their safety,” said Aman Gupta, chief human resources officer at Tata Communications.

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IT industry body Nasscom said it’s in touch with the government and key stakeholders. It highlighted that some of the key focus areas for the IT industry to prioritize include: Identify roles where remote working can be operationalised and where critical staff will need to work from office.

Staffing firm TeamLease Services sent out an advisory on Friday.”Our employees were told to avoid travel to northern and western parts of the country,” said Kartik Narayan, chief executive officer at TeamLease Services. Mint has learnt that Axis Bank has issued a travel advisory wherein the lender has informed employees to follow the directives from the government’s aviation authorities and check any adjustments to the flight schedule with the airlines and the bank’s travel vendor. Axis Bank has yet to respond to Mint’s queries.

“In line with the government directive, we have issued travel advisory to the border states in current times and also advised the employees stationed in those states to work from home and participate in all mock drills,” said Adarsh Mishra, chief human resources officer, Panasonic Life Solutions India. The advisory was issued on Wednesday.