The Ministry of Labour and Employment has set up expert committees to review standards under the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH&WC) Code, 2020.

The OSH&WC Code as been enacted after amalgamating thirteen different labour legislations and is aimed at simplifying the laws regulating the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions in establishments.

"The Central Government has constituted Expert Committees comprising of industry and subject experts from both public and private sector across the country to review the existing rules and regulations on safety, health and working conditions standards, pertaining to factories, docks and construction work," the Labour Ministry said on Thursday (1 April).

The Expert Committees for Factories and Dock Works are constituted under Chairmanship of Dr R K Elangovan, DG, DGFASLI (Directorate General, Factory Advice and Labour Institutes), Mumbai, the ministry said.

The expert panel for the Building and Other Construction Works will be headed by P L N Murthy, VP and Head Domestic Operations, L&T Hydrocarbon, Chennai. Further, the panel on Fire Safety has been constituted under Chairmanship of D K Shami, Fire Advisor to the Government of India.

According to the ministry, as many as 113 standards under the Factories Rules framed under the Factories Act, 1948 would be reviewed.

The existing standards in form of rules and regulations pertaining to factories, docks and construction works have not been reviewed since their last notification in 1950, 1990 and 1998 respectively and hence there is a pressing need to update them to meet the current requirements due to technological progress and system improvements, the ministry said.

The ministry informed that 102 standards will be reviewed under the Dock Workers (Safety, Health Welfare) Regulations, 1990.

The review will help to incorporate the advancements and progress made in the field of OSH&WC, it said.

Similarly, 196 standards will be reviewed under the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Central Rules, 1998.

“Considering the recent spurt in fire accidents at workplaces causing pain and agony to our workers and their families as well as huge losses to the national economy, a separate committee on fire safety standards has been formed so as to have a comprehensive and holistic approach for fire safety provisions presently provided under the above mentioned Rules and Regulations as well as to align the same with National Building Code, 2016," said Minister of Labour and Employment Santosh Gangwar.

Gangwar further stressed that this process will pave the way for establishing uniform and updated standards of safety and health of workers throughout the country by regulatory compliances with pro-active participation of the stakeholders, and will result in conducive environment for enhancing the efficiency of workers in the establishments and will provide win-win environment to all stakeholders and productivity will increase multifold.