Supreme Court allows women to serve drinks in Delhi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Women will be allowed to work as bartenders in New Delhi, India's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, upholding a lower court's decision that an earlier ban was unconstitutional, local TV channels reported.

City authorities had wanted the ban reinstated, arguing that women needed to be protected from the bad behavior of drunken Delhi men.

The Delhi High Court had scrapped the ban in 2006, saying it went against the constitution's principles of equality, the reports said.

Women enjoy equal rights in most professions in India, although women's groups complain of gender discrimination.

The Indian capital is considered unsafe for women and has the highest rate of crime against women in the country. The city is also notorious for drunken brawls and road accidents involving drivers under the influence.

(Reporting by Jonathan Allen; Editing by Y.P. Rajesh)