Factories act 1948 ppt

1. FACTORIES ACT, 1948
Dipankar Dutta
MBA, 4th Sem
Assam University, Silchar
dipankarpharma1@gmail.com

2. Introduction and History of the Act
• Cotton mills in 1851 and a jute mill in Bengal in 1855 ushered the modern
factory system in India. Factory Act is a central legislation which came into
existence in the year1881.
• The Act was amended in the year 1891, 1911, 1922, 1934, 1948, 1976 and
1987. It was extensively amended in the year 1948. And it came into force
on 1st April 1949.
• This act is based on the provisions which are provided under Factory Act of
Great Britain passed in the year 1937.
• There are total 11 chapter and 120 Sections in Factories Act 1948.

3. Object of the Act
• The Act has been enacted primarily with the object of protecting workers
employed in factories against industrial and occupational hazards.
• For that purpose, it seeks to impose upon the owner or the occupier certain
obligations to protect the workers and to secure for them
• employment in conditions conductive to their health and safety. To protect
human being from being subject to unduly long hour of bodily strain and
manual labor.

4. Scope and Applicability:
• The Act extends to the whole of the country including Jammu and
Kashmir.
• It applies to every industries including factories belonging to the State &
Central Government.
• The Act which empowers the state government to declare any of the
factories or premises of the Act apply to secure safety, health and welfare,
but it does not include a mine or mobile unit belonging to armed force of
union, restaurant and hotels.

5. Component of Factories Act 1948
• Chapter I – Preliminary
• Chapter II – The inspecting stuff
• Chapter III – Health
• Chapter IV – Safety
• Chapter IV A – Hazardous process
• Chapter V – Welfare
• Chapter VI – Working hours of
adult
• Chapter VII – Employment of
young persons
• Chapter VIII – Annual leave with
wages
• Chapter IX- Special provisions
• Chapter X – Penalties and
procedures
• Chapter XI - Supplemental

6. Definitions:
Factory:
According to the Factories Act,1948, under Section 2(m) a ‘Factory' means "any premises
including-
• Whereon ten or more workers are working, or were working on any day of the
preceding twelve months, and in any part of which a manufacturing process is being
carried on with the aid of power, or is ordinarily so carried on, or
• Whereon twenty or more workers are working, or were working on any day of the
preceding twelve months, and in any part of which a manufacturing process is being
carried on without the aid of power, or is ordinarily so carried on; but this does not
include a mine subject to the operation of the Mines Act, 1952, or a mobile unit
belonging to the armed forces of the union, a railway running shed or a hotel, restaurant
or eating place.

7. Manufacturing Process:
Section 2(k) of the Factories Act 1948 defines Manufacturing process as-
• Making, altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, packing, oiling, washing,
cleaning, breaking up, demolishing, or
• otherwise treating or adapting any article or substance with a view to its use,
sale, transport, delivery or disposal, Pumping oil, water, sewage, or
• any other substance; or Generating, transforming or transmitting power; or
composing types for printing, printing by letter press, lithography, or
• Other similar process or book binding;
• Constructing, reconstructing, refitting, finishing or breaking up ships or
vessels Preserving or storing any article in cold storage.

8. Worker:
Section 2(I) deals with workers. ‘Worker’ means ‘‘a person employed (directly or
by or through any agency including a contractor), with or without the knowledge
of the principal employer, whether for remuneration or not in any manufacturing
process or in cleaning any part of the machinery or premises used for a
manufacturing process or in any other kind of work incidental to or connected with
the manufacturing process or the subject of the manufacturing process.”

9. Occupier:
Sec.2 (n) ‘Occupier’ of a factory means “the person who has ultimate control over the
affairs of the factory; and
(i) In the case of a firm or other association of individuals, any one of the individual
partners or members thereof shall be deemed to be the occupier;
(ii) In the case of a company, any one of the directors shall be deemed to be the
occupier;
(iii) In the case of a factory owned or controlled by the Central Government or any
State Government, or any local authority, the person or persons appointed to
manage the affairs of the factory shall be deemed to be the occupier.”

10. Approval, licensing and registration of factories (Sec 6)
• The first step towards establishing a factory in India is the registration of the
factory, and once the registration is done, the licenses can be availed from the
government.
• Responsibility for getting the premises approved lies on the occupier.
• As per section 6 of the Factories Act state Govt. can frame the rules for approval,
licensing and for registration of the factories.
• An applicant has to apply with duly filled in Form No-2, a set of prescribed
documents and fees prescribed in the proper head of Account in the shape of
Treasury Chalan in the office of Director of Factories & Boilers, of his state.
• The state Govt. also can declare any departments or branches of a particular
factory as a separate factories, if requested by the occupier (section 4).
• Section 5 of the factories act enable Govt. to exempt any factory or a class of
factories from its provisions only when a “pubic emergency” exists. Section 5
defines “Public emergency” as a “grave emergency” which threatens the internal
security of India or any part of territory by war or any internal disturbances.

11. The Inspecting stuff (Sec 8)
The state Govt. can appoint inspector by publishing a notification. There are six types
of inspectors
(i) Chief Inspector
(ii) Additional Chief Inspectors
(iii) Joint Chief Inspectors
(iv) Deputy Chief inspectors
(v) Inspectors and Additional Inspectors
Every district Magistrate shall be an Inspector for his district. Also State Government
can appoint-public officers as additional Inspectors.

12. Power of Inspector (Sec 9)
• An inspector can entry too any industry for examination.
• For the inspecting purpose and can take photographs/video of the industry
premises
• Inspector can seize or take copies of any register, record or other document.
• So the main duty of an inspector is to ensure that statutory provisions and rules
framed are carried out properly; and to launch prosecutions against factory
owners under Chapter X of the Act

13. Health provisions
Chapter III of the Factories Act contains details regarding health of the workers.
Cleanliness (Sec 11)
• Every factory shall be kept clean and free from effluvia arising from any drain,
privy or other nuisance, and in particular—
• Accumulations of dirt and refuse shall be removed daily by sweeping or by any
other effective method from the floors and benches of workrooms and from
staircases and passages, and disposed of in a suitable manner;
• The floor of every workroom shall be cleaned at least once in every week by
washing, using disinfectant, where necessary, or by some other effective method
• Where a floor is liable to become wet in the course of any manufacturing
process to such extent as is capable of being drained, effective means of
drainage shall be provided as maintained.
• The walls, celling and other portion of the room must be white wash in every 14
days and paint/varnish by every 5 years.

14. Disposal of waste and effluents (Sec 12)
• Effective arrangements shall be made in every factory for the treatment of
wastes and effluents due to the manufacturing process carried on therein, so
as to render them innocuous, and for their disposal.
• The State Government may make rules prescribing the arrangements to be
made by the industry for disposal of waste and effluents.

15. Ventilation and temperature (Sec 13)
Effective and suitable provision shall be made in every factory for
securing and maintaining in every workroom—
• Adequate ventilation by the circulation of fresh air, and
• Such a temperature as will secure to workers therein reasonable
conditions of comfort and prevent injury to health.
• The State Government may prescribe a standard of adequate
ventilation and reasonable temperature for any factory or class or
description of factories.
• If it appears to the Chief Inspector that excessively high temperatures
in any factory can be reduced by the adoption of suitable measures,
he can order the occupier in writing specifying the measures which,
in his opinion, should be adopted, and requiring them to be carried
out before a specified date.

16. Dust and Fume (Sec 14)
Every factory must follow followings rules to prevent dust and fume-
• Effective measures should be taken to prevent inhalation and
accumulation of dust and fume in the working area. If any exhaust
appliance is necessary for this purpose, it shall be applied as near as
possible to the point of origin of the dust, fume or other impurity, and
such point shall be enclosed so far as possible.
• In any factory no stationary internal combustion engine shall be
operated unless the exhaust is conducted into the open air.

17. Artificial Humidification (Sec15)
In respect of all factories in which the humidity of the air is artificially
increased, the State Government may make rules,—
(a) Prescribing standard of humidification;
(b) Regulating the methods used for artificially increasing the humidity of
the air
(c) Directing prescribed tests for determining the humidity of the air to be
correctly carried out and recorded
(d) Prescribing methods to be adopted for securing adequate ventilation and
cooling of the air and the workrooms
(e) In any factory in which the humidity of the air is artificially increased,
the water used for the purpose shall be taken from a public supply, or other
source of drinking water, or shall be effectively purified before it is so used

18. Overcrowding (Sec16)
Every factory must follow-
• For minimizing the overcrowding of the working room 14.2 cubic meter per
worker must be maintained by each and every factory. While calculating this
space, space above the worker beyond 402 meters will not be taken into
consideration.
• Notice specifying the maximum number of worker which can be employed in a
particular room shall be displayed in the premises.
Lighting (Sec 17)
• In every part of a factory where workers are working or passing there shall be
provided and maintained sufficient and suitable lighting, natural or artificial or
both.
• In every factory all glazed windows and skylights used for the lighting of the
workroom shall be kept clean on both the inner and outer surfaces.
• The State Government may prescribe standards of sufficient and suitable
lighting for factories or for any class or description of factories or for any
manufacturing process.

19. Drinking Water (Sec 18)
• There must be drinking water facility in factory and the container of the
water must be written as drinking water. There should be minimum 6 miters
distance of the drinking water container from the urinal or toilet. If the
number of worker in a factory is more than 250 then there must be cold
water facility there.
Latrines and urinals (Sec 19)
• There must be separate latrines and urinal for male and female in factory and
the toilet and latrines must be clean on daily basis.

20. Spittoons (Sec 20)
• In every factory there shall be provided a sufficient number of spittoons
in convenient places and they shall be maintained in a clean and
hygienic condition.
• The State Government may make rules prescribing the type and the
number of spittoons to be provided and their location in any factory and
provide for such further matters relating to their maintenance in a clean
and hygienic condition.
• No person shall spit within the premises of a factory except in the
spittoons provided for the purpose and a notice containing this provision
and the penalty for its violation shall be prominently displayed at
suitable places in the premises.

21. Safety of workers
The safety of workers are given in the chapter IV from section 21 to 41.
• Fencing of machinery (Sec 21)
• Machines in motions (Sec 22) : Examination of machinery in motion only by a specially
trained adult worker who wearing tight fit cloth. No women or children are allowed to
work on machines which are in motions
• Employment of younger persons in dangerous machinery ( Sec23)
• Striking Gears (Sec24)
• Self-acting machines (Sec 25)
• Casing of new machines (Sec26)
• No women or children are allowed to work on cotton openers.( Sec 27)
• Lift and hoist must be examined every 6 months and maximum load of the lift must be
mentioned. ( Sec 28)
• Lifting machine, cranes and chains are properly examined under specified time interval
and cranes and lifting machines not to be loaded beyond safe working load.( Sec 29)

23. Welfare provisions
Chapter V of the factories Act having numbers of provisions for the welfare of the workers from
section 42 to section 50.
Washing facilities (Sec42)
• There should be washing facilities in every factory for the workers separate for male and female
workers properly screened.
• Conveniently accessible and shall be kept clean.
Facility for storing and drying of clothing (Sec.43)
• There should be facility so that worker can place their cloth not worn during the manufacturing
process.
• There should be facility so that worker can dry their wet cloth.
Facilities for sitting (Sec.44)
• Suitable arrangements for sitting shall be provided and maintained for all workers obliged to
work in a standing position
• If the worker can do the work by sitting, - there should be sitting arrangement for the worker.

24. First-aid appliances (Sec.45)
• There should be at least 1 first aid box for every 150 workers.
• It should have the prescribed contents.
• A responsible person should hold a certificate on first aid treatment.
• An ambulance room should be there if the number of workers is more than 500.
Canteen (sec.46)
• If the number of workers is more than 250, the State govt. may make rules for
canteen.
• The State govt. may make rules regarding foodstuff, construction, furniture,
equipment of the canteen.
Shelter, rest room, lunch room (Sec.47)
• When 150 workers are working, there should be rest rooms, lunch room, etc.
• Such places should be having drinking water facilities etc.

25. Crèches (Sec.48)
• If the number of women workers is more than 30, there should be the
crèches.
• It should be sufficiently lighted, ventilated & to be under the charge of
trained women
• Welfare Officer (Sec.49)
If the number of workers is 500 or more, there should be a welfare officer to
look after the welfare of the workers