New Delhi: In an effort to celebrate diversity and inclusion, broadcasting company Star India has decided to extend health insurance cover to the partners of its LGBT+ employees. All existing employee benefits around maternity and paternity, IVF, surrogacy and adoption will be applicable to LGBT+ employees.

This is the first time the company has come up with an initiative of this sort. It will be effective 1 July. Celebrating diversity and inclusion is at the core of Star India’s vision, mission and values, the company said in a statement.

Previously, Star was one of the first organizations to offer ‘6+6 months’ maternity leave programme, four weeks of paternity leave, and a flexible leave policy that allowed its employees to take as many days of paid leave as they need, recognizing the individual’s desire for flexibility.

“At Star, we believe that our people are happiest when they can bring their authentic self to work. Since our inception, diversity and inclusion have been our biggest strengths. It helps us build enduring characters, rich stories and imagine more possibilities. We respect each individual’s diverse perspectives to foster a truly inclusive culture," according to Amita Maheshwari, head of human resources, APAC (Asia and Pacific), DTCI (direct-to-consumer and international segments), The Walt Disney Co.

The Walt Disney Co agreed to buy Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox Inc for about $52.4 billion in stock in December 2017.

According to an 'Economic Times' report earlier this week, Citigoup Inc decided to extend family health insurance coverage and relocation expenses in India to all “domestic partners," including live-in partners and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) partners. The New York-headquartered investment bank and financial services corporation will be one of the first in the country to offer insurance cover to live-in or unmarried partners of heterosexual employees in its group insurance policy. Some other companies in India that offer medical insurance to same-sex partners of their LGBTQ employees include Godrej Group, Accenture and IBM.

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