1. The short question that arises for consideration in this writ petition is whether a woman employee working in the Chennai Port Trust is entitled to avail maternity leave even in case where she gets the child through arrangement by Surrogate parents?

2. The petitioner is working as an Assistant Superintendent in the Traffic department of the Chennai Port Trust. She had put in 24 years of service. She is married. Her son (Shyam Sundar) aged 20 years died die to road accident on 31.01.2009. After his birth, the petitioner has removed her uterus due to some problem on 30.04.2008. Therefore, she in order to have a child had entered into an arrangement with Prashanth Multispeciality hospital, Chennai to have a baby through surrogate procedure. Finally with the consent of her husband and his cooperation, a female baby was born on 08.02.2011 through a host mother. She had incurred substantial expenditure towards treatment. In order to look after the newly born baby, she had applied for maternity leave. But she was informed that she was not entitled for maternity leave (post delivery) for having a child through surrogate procedure though such a rejection was not possible in cas