ASSAM FACTORIES (AMENDMENT) RULES, 2017

PREAMBLE

Whereas certain draft rules further to amend the Assam Factories Rules, 1950, herein after referred to as the Principal Rules, were published vide Government Notification No, GLR. 71/2016/C/46, dated the 8th June, 2017 as required by subsection (1) of section 115 of the Factories Act, 1948 (63 of 1948) in the Assam Gazette, Extraordinary No, 399 dated 13th July, 2017 inviting objections or suggestions from all persons likely to be affected thereby before the expiry of a period of 45 (Forty-five) days from the date of publication of said Notification in the Official Gazette.

And whereas no objections or suggestions have been received from any person likely to be affected thereby:

Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 112 of the Factories Act, 1948 (63 of 1948), the Governor of Assam is hereby pleased to make the following rules further to amend the Assam Factories Rules, 1950, in the manner herein after appearing, namely:-

CHAPTER I PRELIMINARY

Rule - 1. Short title and commencement.

(1)     These rules may be called the Assam Factories (Amendment) Rules, 2017.

(2)     They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

Rule - 2. Amendment of rule 2.

In the principal Rules, in rule 2, -

(i)       after clause (d), the following new clause (da) shall be inserted, namely:-

""(da) Dangerous Operations" means the operations as declared under rule 94 of the Assam Factories Rules, 1950, prescribed under section 87 of the Factories Act, 1948 (Central Act No. 63 of 1948);"

(ii)      after clause (g), the following new clause (ga) shall be inserted, namely:-

""(ga) Hazardous Process" means any process or activity as defined under section 2 (cb) of the Factories Act, l948 (Central Act No. 63 of 1948);"

(iii)     after clause (1), the following new clause (m) shall be inserted, namely:-

"(m) Major Accident Hazards Installation" means the installations as defined in rule 2 (g) of the Chemical Accident (Emergency Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules, 1996 framed under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (Act No. 29 of 1986)."

Rule - 3. Deletion of rule 3.

In the principal Rules, existing rule 3 shall be deleted.

Rule - 4. Substitution of rule 3A.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule 3A, the following shall be substituted, namely:-

"3A. Submission, processing and approval of plans.-

(1)     No site shall be used for the location of a factory or no building in a factory be constructed/extended or taken into use as a factory and no additional machinery be installed or no prime movers exceeding the horsepower already installed in a factory be installed unless previous permission in writing is obtained from the Chief Inspector.

(2)     Application for such permission shall be made in Form No. 1 to the Chief inspector of Factories, Assam till the infrastructure for making such application and their processing in the manner as required under section 9 of the Assam Ease of Doing Business Act, 2016 becomes operational. After the infrastructure for making such application and their processing as required under section 9 of the Assam Ease of Doing Business Act, 2016, is ready, the Labour & Welfare Department shall do away with manual submission of application. All such applications shall be accompanied by the following documents:-

(i)       A flow chart of the manufacturing process supplemented by a brief description of the process in its various stages,

(ii)      Plans in triplicate drawn to scale showing-

(a)      The site of the factory and immediate surroundings including adjacent building and other structures, roads, drains, etc, drawn to a scale not less than 1 cm = 20 meters or drawn to a lower scale with the permission of Chief Inspector; and

(b)      The plans, elevation and necessary cross-sections of the various building, indicating all relevant details relating to natural lighting, ventilation and means of escape in case of fire. The plans shall also clearly indicate the position of the plant and machinery, aisles and passage ways, and shall be drawn to a scale not less than 1 cm - 10 meters or drawn to a suitable scale with the permission of Chief Inspector;

(iii)     Such other documents as the Chief Inspector may require; and

(iv)    In case of factory involving hazardous process covered under clause (cb) of section 2, the detailed policy with respect to the health and safety of the workers employed therein and other particulars shall be submitted as specified in sub-section (2) of section 41-B of the Act.

(3)     If Chief Inspector is satisfied that the plans are in consonance with the requirements of the Act, he shall subject to such condition as he may specify, approve them within the period specified in the table given below by signing and returning to the applicant one copy of each plan, or he may call for such other particulars as he may require to enable such approval to be given.

Table

Time Line for Approval of Plans

(4)     No deviation of any kind from approved plans shall be made without the written permission of the Chief-Inspector."

Rule - 5. Substitution of rule 4.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule-4, the following shall be substituted, namely:-

"4, Notice of occupation of a factory and application for its registration and grant or renewal of license-

(1)     The occupier of every factory coming within the scope of the Act, after its commencement shall submit to the Chief Inspector of Factories, Assam a notice of occupation and application in triplicate in Form No, 2 or submit an application as per the provision of the section 9 of the Assam Ease of Doing Business Act, 2016 for the registration of the factory and grant of a license thereof for a period as specified in rule 5. Every application submitted under this sub-rule shall be accompanied with proof of payment of fee specified in sub-rule (2):

Provided that the Occupier of a place to which the provisions of the Act are made applicable by the notification under section 85 of the Act shall submit an application within 30 days of the date of the notification.

(2)     Every such application shall be accompanied by a treasury receipt or online payment certificate as approved by the State Government for payment of the fee as specified in the Schedule A, B or C."

Rule - 6. Substitution of rule 5.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule 5, the following shall be substituted, namely:-

"5. Grant of License, -

(1)     The Chief Inspector may, on application being made to him under sub-rule (1) of rule 4 and on payment of fees prescribed in sub-rule (2) of rule 4 and on being satisfied that there is no objection to the grant of license applied, register the factory and grant a license for a period of 10 (ten) years within the time period as shown in the table below, in Form No. 4 to the applicant to use as factory such premises as are specified in the application and subject to compliance with such condition as are specified in the license:

Provided that subject to the provision of sub-section (3) of section 6 of the Act, the Chief Inspector may refuse to register the factory and grant of a license, if he is satisfied,-

(i)       that the factory has not been constructed in accordance with the plans approved by the Chief Inspector or in noncompliance with the conditions subject to which the plans are approved;

(ii)      that there is imminent danger to life in the factory due to explosive material or inflammable or toxic dust, gas or fumes, and no effective measures, in his opinion has been taken to remove the danger,

Table

(2)     Every license granted or renewed under this chapter shall remain in force up to the 31st December of the year/years for which the license is granted or renewed".

Rule - 7. Substitution of rule 6.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule 6, the following shall be substituted, namely:-

"6. Amendment of license.-

(1)     A license granted under rule 5 or renewed under rule 7 may be amended by the Chief Inspector of Factories within the period specified in the table given below.

Table

(2)     A licensee shall be required to have the license amended if there is change in name of the factory, or if the factory for which the license is granted exceeds the limits specified in the license in regard to horsepower or the number of persons employed.

(3)     A licensee who desires to have his license amended shall submit it to the Chief Inspector with an application in Form No. 2 stating the nature of the amendment and reasons thereof.

(4)     The fees for the amendment of a license shall be rupees five hundred and the amount, if any, by which the fee that would have been payable if the license had originally being issued in the amended form exceeds the fee originally paid for the license,

(5)     In case of any administrative or processing error on the part of Licensing Authority, no amendment fees shall be levied."

Rule - 8. Substitution of rule 7.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule 7, following shall be substituted, namely:-

"7. Renewal of License,-

(1)     An application for the renewal of license shall be made to the Chief Inspector in Form No. 2 in duplicate accompanied by a Treasury receipt or Bank Draft or online payment certificate as approved by the State Government, as the case may be, for payment of the fees specified in the Schedule A, B or C under rule 4(2), so as to reach him on or before 30 days of the date of expiry of the license.

(2)     On receipt of the application under sub-rule (1), the Chief Inspector may, if he is satisfied that there is no objection to the renewal of license, renew the same for 10 (ten) years within the time line as shown in the table below or may, after recording his reasons, in accordance to the applicability of rejection clause provided in the sub-rule (1) of Rule 5, refuse the renewal of license applied,

Table

Provided that if the period for which the license is applied for is one year or more but does not exceed 10 years, the fees payable per year shall be at the rates specified in the Schedule A, B or C under rule 4(2).

Provided further that where the application for the renewal of the license is made after the expiry of the due date specified in sub-rule (1) it may be renewed on payment of an additional fee of 25 percent of the fee payable for the renewal of the license subject to the minimum of rupees five hundred.

(3)     Every license renewed under this rule shall remain in force up to 31" December of the year for which the license is renewed."

Rule - 9. Substitution of rule 8.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rules 8, the following shall be substituted namely:-

"8. Transfer of License.-

(1)     The holder of a license may at any time before the expiry of the license, apply for permission to transfer his license to another person,

(2)     Such application shall be made along with Form no. 2 duly filled-in and signed by the new occupier, to the Chief Inspector, who subject to his satisfaction for approval of the proposed transfer, enter upon the license under his signature and an endorsement to the effect that license has been transferred to the person proposed by the applicant.

(3)     A fee of rupees one thousand shall be charged on each such application.

(4)     An application for transfer of license shall be as far as possible, decided within a period of 30 working days,"

Rule - 10. Substitution of rule 11.

In the principal Rules, for the existing rule 11, the following shall be substituted, namely:

"11. Mode of payment of fees.-

(1)     Every application under these rules shall be accompanied by a treasury receipt showing the deposit of appropriate amount of fee/fees under the Head of Account "0230-Labour and Employment, 104-Fees realized under the Factories Act" or online payment certificate as approved by the State Government for the appropriate amount of fees,

(2)     If an application for grant, renewal or amendment or transfer of a license is rejected, the fees paid shall be refunded to the applicant by the Government.

(3)     Where such application is granted, any amount paid by the applicant in excess of the prescribed fee may be adjusted against payment of any fees due for the next succeeding year."

Rule - 11. Amendment of rule 13.

In the principal Rules, in rule 13,

(i)       after the expression, "have power to do all or any of the following things," the expression "as per the computerized allocation of factories on risk parameters and as per the table specified below" shall be inserted.

(ii)      after the first paragraph, the following table shall be inserted, namely:-

"TABLE

Rule - 12. Insertion of new rule 13-B.

In the principal Rules, after rule 13-A, the following new rule 13 B, shall be inserted, namely:-

"13-B Well Defined Inspection procedure":

An Inspector shall, while carrying out the inspection under these rules, shall follow the detailed scheme and procedure as mentioned herein below:-

(1)     Classification of Factories 

The factories of the State of Assam have been categorized into the following classifications in the interest of the inspection schedule.

(a)      Major Accident Hazards Installation (as defined in rule 2(6) of the Chemical Accident (Emergency, Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules 1996.

(b)      Factories involving Hazardous Process: (As defined under section 2 (cb) of the Factories Act, 1948.

(c)      Factories involving dangerous operations as declared under rule 94 of the Assam Factories Rules 1950 under section 87 under Factories Act, 1948.

(d)      Factories employing more than 10 workers.

(e)      Factories employing less than 10 workers (As declared under section 85 of the Factories Act, 1948. (f| Factories under self-certification scheme as introduced vide Govt. Notification No. GLR. 71/2016/C/Pt/44, Dtd 16-03-2017.

(2)     (a) Priority criteria for the inspection of Factories:

An Inspector official shall for the purposes of the Act carry out inspection as per the computerized allocation of factories on risk parameters and as per the schedule specified in the table below:

Table;

(b) Mandatory inspections are to be adopted in the following circumstances:

(i)       The factories where fatal, serious accident or any dangerous occurrence have taken place.

(ii)      Factories where there are reports of notifiable diseases, public complaint or any disputes in matters of safety, health and welfare of workers.

(iii)     Defaulter factories.

(iv)    Closed Factories where workers dues are not settled.

(v)      Factories who have not submitted self-certified returns.

(vi)    Any emergency that may entail mandatory inspection.

(3)     Methodology of inspection:

The methodology to be followed for inspection is outlined below:

(a)      Computerized generation of inspection program shall be communicated to the Inspectors.

(b)      Inspectors must upload their inspection reports in the prescribed inspection proforma within 48 (Forty Eight) hours of inspection (Format - A).

(c)      Inspectors to feed the monthly/annual inspection summary templates prescribed in this behalf for uploading in the public domain with the help of computer program prepared by any authorized agency.

(d)      The entire inspection would be carried out according to the single checklist and procedures formulated in this regard and Annexed hereto as Format A.

FORMAT A

INSPECTION PROFORMA

(1)     Name of the factory and other details:

(i)       Address,

(ii)      Nature of manufacturing process.

(iii)     Name of Manager.

(iv)    Responsible person present during inspection.

(v)      Name of the Occupier

(2)     Details regarding license:

(i)       License No.

(ii)      Total rated H.P. installed- As per the license.

(iii)     Total nos. of workers employed

(iv)    Maximum workers at a time.

(v)      Actual nos. of workers during inspection.

(vi)    Nos. of contractor's (or other agencies) workers.

(3)     Health Provisions:-

(i)       Whether the 'Health' provisions of the Act has been generally complied with?

(ii)      If not, mention deficiencies in short.

(iii)     Nos. of latrines: For (M)For (F)

Nos. of drinking water points.

(4)     Safety Provisions:-

(i)       Whether the 'Safety' provisions of the Act has been generally complied with?

(ii)      If not, mention deficiencies in short.

(iii)     Whether provisions of emergency exit has been generally complied with?

(iv)    Nos. of Safety Officers appointed (if applicable).

(v)      Whether the lifting tackle and pressure vessels are tested by Competent Persons.

(vi)    Whether PPE's are provided and used by the workers?

(5)     Does the manufacturing process involves any hazardous process?

If yes, please provide in short.

(i)       Status of compulsory disclosure of information by the occupier.

(ii)      Status of Health records and medical examination of worker?

(iii)     Status of Safety Committee.

(6)     Welfare Provisions:-

(i)       Whether washing facilities for M/F provided.

(ii)      Status of First Aid appliances/Ambulance Room.

(iii)     Names & nos. welfare Officers.

(iv)    State whether provided (if the provision is applicable).

(I)      Canteen.

(II)     Lunch room/Rest room.

(III)   Creche.

(7)     General information:-

(a)      Whether Safety Suggestion scheme exist?

(b)      Whether Safety Policy has been declared?

(c)      Whether Safety propaganda/education work was done?

(d)      Employment of young person and certificate of fitness thereof.

(e)      Whether Annual fit Half Yearly returns have been submitted.

(f)       State the names of the dangerous operation carried out as per the schedules annexed to Rule 95 of the Assam Factories Rules.

(g)      State whether ESIS is applicable.

(h)     If all workers are not covered under the ESIS scheme, whether scheme exist for payment of compensation due to accident. If yes mention the details in brief.

(i)       Details of working hours, over time and leave with wages.

(j)       Maintenance of register/records etc.

(k)      Any incident of accident in between your last and today's inspection?

(l)       Whether the violation detected during last inspection have been rectified?

(8)     For MAH Installations/Isolated Storages only.

(i)       Main activity,

(ii)      Assessment of the Safety System.

Is a work permit system available"

For different type of jobs such as-Cable work

-Hot work

-Vessel entry

-Excavation

(iii)     Safety Policy.

Is a documented Safety Policy available?

(iv)    Emergency Provisions.

Has the management prepared on-site emergency plan?

Type and frequency of emergency mock drill (on-site).

Has the district authority prepared & approved the off-site emergency plan?

Type & frequency of emergency mock drill (off site).

(v)      Safety Audit & Safety Reports.

I.         Whether safety audit has been conducted by external agency and safety report prepared as required under rule 10 of the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989?

II.       Whether Safety report submitted to the Chief Inspector of Factories?

(vi)    Specific information.

(vii)   Safety Equipments

Whether the following system are provided:

preasure - relief system.

I.         Temperature/pressure/flow sensors.

II.       System preventing over flow.

III.     Safety Shut Down System.

IV.      Alarm system based on functioning of sensors, detection of failure of safety related components, detection of fire/leak etc.

(9)     Any other observation on Safety, Health and Welfare not included above.

FORM NO. 1

(Prescribed under rule 3A)

APPLICATION FOR PERMISSION TO CONSTRUCT, EXTEND OR TAKE INTO USE ANY BUILDING AS A FACTORY

NOTE: a. In ease of any change in the above information, Department shall be informed in writing within 30 days,

b. Seal bearing "authorized signatory" shall not be used on any document

Place:________________________

Date:________________________

Signature of occupier with seal:_________________________________________

(Name)

CHECKLIST

NOTE: This application shall be accompanies by the following documents:-

1.        A flow chart of the manufacturing process supplemented by a brief description of the process in its various stage.

2.        Plans, in triplicate, drawn to scale showing:

(i)       The site of the factory and immediate surroundings including adjacent buildings and other structures, roads, drains, etc and

(ii)      The Plan elevation and necessary cross-section of various buildings indicating all relevant details relating to natural lighting, ventilation and means of escape in case of fire. The plans shall also clearly indicate the position of plant and machinery, aisles and passage ways.

3.        Photo ID and address proof of the occupier.

4.        Such other particulars as the Chief Inspector may require.

5.        Every Page of the Documents submitted along with the Form should be self attested by the occupier along with date

6.        Any correction made in the Form should be duly signed by the occupier."

Rule - 13. Substitution of FORM No. 2.

In the principal Rules, for the existing FORM No. 2,(Prescribed under Rule 4, 6, 7 and 8)the following shall be substituted, namely:-