Mumbai,  Lending major SBI has withdrawn a circular which made pregnant women candidates ineligible for employment with the bank.

In a statement on Saturday, SBI said it has decided to keep the revised instructions regarding recruitment of pregnant women candidates in abeyance.

Accordingly, SBI recently reviewed the various 'Fitness Standards for Recruitment' in the Bank, including norms for 'Pregnant Women' candidates.

"The revised guidelines were intended to provide clarity on various health parameters where instructions were not clear or were very old. In some sections of the media, the revision in norms in this regard has been interpreted as discriminatory against women," the bank said in a statement.

"SBI has always been proactive towards the care and empowerment of its women employees who now constitute around 25 per cent of our workforce."

In addition, the bank said that during the Covid period, as per Centre's instructions, pregnant women employees were exempted from attending office and allowed to 'Work From Home'.