SAFETY AND HEALTH MEASURESCentral

Section 40 of The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996

(1)The appropriate Government may, by notification, make rules regarding the measures to be taken for the safety and health of building workers in the course of their employment and the equipment and appliances necessary to be provided to them for ensuring their safety, health and protection, during such employment.
(2)In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:--
1. (a)the safe means of access to, and the safety of, any working place, including the provision of suitable and sufficient scaffolding at various stages when work cannot be safely done from the ground or from any part of a building or from a ladder or such other means of support;
2. (b)the precautions to be taken in connection with the demolition of the whole or any substantial part of a building or other structure under the supervision of a competent person and the avoidance of danger from collapse of any building or other structure while removing any part of the framed building or other structure by shoring or otherwise;
3. (c)the handling or use of explosive under the control of competent persons so that there is no exposure to the risk of injury from explosion or from flying material;
4. (d)the erection, installation, use and maintenance of transporting equipment, such as locomotives, trucks, wagons and other vehicles and trailers and appointment of competent persons to drive or operate such equipment;
5. (e)the erection, installation, use and maintenance of hoists, lifting appliances and lifting gear including periodical testing and examination and heat treatment, where necessary, precautions to be taken while raising or lowering loads, restrictions on carriage of persons and appointment of competent persons on hoists or other lifting appliances;
6. (f)the adequate and suitable lighting of every workplace and approach thereto, of every place where raising or lowering operations with the use of hoists, lifting appliances or lifting gears are in progress and of all openings dangerous to building workers employed;
7. (g)the precautions to be taken to prevent inhalation of dust, fumes, gases or vapours during any grinding, cleaning, spraying or manipulation of any material and steps to be taken to secure and maintain adequate ventilation of every working place or confined space;
8. (h)the measures to be taken during stacking or unstacking, stowing or unstowing of materials or goods or handling in connection therewith;
  1. (i)the safeguarding of machinery including the fencing of every fly-wheel and every moving part of a prime mover and every part of transmission or other machinery, unless it is in such a position or of such construction as to be safe to every worker working on any of the operations and as if it were securely fenced;
9. (j)the safe handling and use of plant, including tools and equipment operated by compressed air;
10. (k)the precautions to be taken in case of fire;
11. (l)the limits of weight to be lifted or moved by workers;
12. (m)the safe transport of workers to or from any workplace by water and provision of means for rescue from drowning;
13. (n)the steps to be taken to prevent danger to workers from live electric wires or apparatus including electrical machinery and tools and from overhead wires;
14. (o)the keeping of safety nets, safety sheets and safety belts where the special nature or the circumstances of work render them necessary for the safety of the workers;
15. (p)the standards to be complied with regard to scaffolding, ladders and stairs, lifting appliances, ropes, chains and accessories, earth moving equipments and floating operational equipments;
16. (q)the precautions to be taken with regard to pile driving, concrete work, work with hot asphalt, tar or other similar things, insulation work, demolition operations, excavation, underground construction and handling materials;
17. (r)the safety policy, that is to say, a policy relating to steps to be taken to ensure the safety and health of the building workers, the administrative arrangements therefor and the matters connected therewith, to be framed by the employers and contractors for the operations to be carried on in a building or other construction work;
18. (s)the information to be furnished to the Bureau of Indian Standards established under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986 (63 of 1986), regarding the use of any article or process covered under that Act in a building or other construction work;
19. (t)the provision and maintenance of medical facilities for building workers;
20. (u)any other matter concerning the safety and health of workers working in any of the operations being carried on in a building or other construction work.

Summary

The government can make detailed rules for the safety and health of construction workers.
These rules cover safe access, scaffolding, and precautions for demolition work.
Rules also regulate the use of explosives, lifting machinery, and protection from dust or fumes.
Employers and contractors must create a safety policy for their construction operations.
The rules may also require providing safety equipment like nets, belts, and sheets.
Medical facilities and fire precautions are also included in the government's rule making power.

Practical examples

1The state government issues a new regulation in December 2024 requiring all workers on skyscrapers to wear specific grade safety harnesses and use safety nets.

2A contractor at a tunnel project develops a formal safety policy document that explains how they will prevent the buildup of dangerous fumes as required by the 1996 law.

FAQ

1. Who has the power to make safety rules under the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996?

Under Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, the appropriate government has the power to make these rules via notification.

2. Does Section 40 of the 1996 Construction Act cover the use of explosives?

Yes, Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, specifically mentions rules for handling and using explosives under competent supervision.

3. Are employers required to have a safety policy under the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996?

Yes, Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, allows for rules requiring employers to frame a safety policy for their work.

Test yourself

Q1.Under Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, which of the following can the government make rules about?

Q2.According to Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, who must supervise the demolition of a building?

Q3.Under Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, what should be done to prevent workers from inhaling dust or fumes?

Q4.Which of these is a requirement for employers and contractors mentioned in Section 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996?

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