The Directorate General of Factory Advice Service &
Labour Institutes (DGFASLI), formerly known as Chief Adviser of Factories, was
set up in 1945 in
DGFASLI
achieved significant importance as an attached office of the ministry of
Labour, Government of India serving as a technical arm to assist the Ministry
in formulation of National policies on Occupational Safety and Health in
Factories and Docks.
The Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act 1986 and
the Regulations 1990 provide for Safety, Health and Welfare of dock
workers. These are enforced by the
DGFASLI through the Inspectorates of Dock Safety set up in all the major ports
in
DGFASLI organisation comprises of the headquarters, the 5
Labour Institutes and 11 Inspectorates of Dock Safety.
·
Headquarter situated in Mumbai.
·
Central Labour Institute in Mumbai.
·
Regional Labour Institutes in Kolkata, Chennai,
·
Inspectorates of Dock Safety at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai,
Kandla, Mormugao, Tuticorin, New
In 1959, the Central Labour Institute, Mumbai was
established under UNDP Project as a socio-economic laboratory and as a national
institute dealing with scientific study of all human aspects of industrial
development. Subsequently, Regional
Labour Institutes are the scale down version of CLI and were established at
Kolkata,
The Labour Institutes are fully equipped with necessary
laboratory facilities for conducting studies and surveys in the field of safety
and health. The Institutes are also
having conference facilities fully supported with modern audio-visual
equipment. Industrial Safety, Health
and
The DGFASLI headquarters at Mumbai
maintains overall liaison with the labour institutes, frames policy, plans and
executes the programme concerning the organisation on matters pertaining to
safety, health and welfare of workers in industries and docks and implements
technical projects and liaises with national and international agencies. The headquarters consists of the following
divisions:
The Central and State Governments on
related matters. The activities include
interpretation of the provisions of the Act and the Rules, formulation of Model
Rules, recommending amendments to the provisions of the Factories Act and the
Rules whenever necessary, issue of technical guidelines, organizing and
conducting training for Inspectors of Factories, recommending approval of
flameproof equipment for use in the factories, review and comment on documents
on safety and health from the International Labour Organisation and other
international agencies and participation in international programmes.
A conference of the Chief Inspectors
of Factories of the States is convened annually for the purpose of obtaining
their views and suggestions regarding the changes that need to be made in the
Act and Rules to meet the changing conditions brought about by new technology.
The division has also been organizing
training for Fellow from developing countries under various technical
assistance programmes of the government such as COLOMBO Plan, Special
Commonwealth African Assistance Programme (SCAAP), etc.
The
statistical cell under the division collects and compiles accident statistics
and other information related to the administration of the Factories Act and
Rules framed there under. This
information base is used in planning and implementation of national policies
concerning occupational safety and health. This information is also used to
prepare replies to the various Parliament questions.
The office of the Chief Adviser of
Factories, presently known as DGFASLI drafted the Indian Dock Labourers
Regulations, 1948 under the Indian Dock Labourers Act, 1934. The Chief Adviser of Factories started
administering the Regulations from 1948 in the five major ports of Mumbai,,
Consequent to the recommendation of
the First National Commission on Labour (Gajendranagar Commission) a common
comprehensive law on safety and health of dock workers titled the Dock Workers
(Safety, Health and Welfare) Act, 1986 was framed and made applicable from 15th
April, 1987. Under this Act a set of
comprehensive regulations called the Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare)
Regulations 1990 was framed and brought into force with effect from
The DGFASLI is also entrusted with
the responsibility of enforcing the Manufacture, Storage and Import of
Hazardous Chemicals Rules 1989 framed under the Environment (Protection) Act
1986, in the port sector.
The main focus of the Dock Safety
division is on:
·
Administering the Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare)
Act, 1986 and the Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1990
framed there under involving administrative approval of decisions arising out
of enforcement of the Statutes by the Chief Inspector of Dock Safety and fixing
inspection priorities, etc. in all the eleven major ports.
·
Proposing amendments to the existing Dock Safety
Legislation.
·
Enforcing the Environment (Protection) Act and the
Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989 framed
thereunder and the Marking of Heavy Packages, Act, 1951 and the Rules made
thereunder.
·
Planning and policy making.
·
Advisory services to the Port Authorities, Dock Labour
Boards, Stevedores and other employers of dock workers.
·
Organising international training programmes for port
officials from developing countries.
·
Publishing Annual Reports on the administration of the Dock
Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act and the Regulations framed thereunder.
The
enforcement function is carried out through the ten inspectorates located at
the major ports with their regional inspectorates in Mumbai,
·
Inspection of ships, docks, loose gear, lifting appliances,
transport equipment, etc.
·
Investigation of accidents.
·
Launching of prosecutions.
Training :
·
Carrying out safety studies and surveys through a
multi-disciplinary approach.
·
Organising and conducting training courses on safety and
health.
Advisory Services:
Rendering
Technical advice to;
·
The port authorities.
·
Other employers of dock workers.
·
Port users.
Safety Promotional activities;
·
Organising / participating in safety promotional activities
such as celebration of Dock Safety Weeks.
·
Functioning as representatives of the Chief Inspector of
Dock Safety on the Dock Safety Committees at ports.
The Awards division of DGFASLI,
Mumbai operates two national level awards Schemes namely National Safety Awards
(NSA) & Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar (VRP). Govt. of
The Awards division also provides
technical support and secretarial assistance to the Prime Minister’s Shram
Awards Schemes being operated by the Ministry of Labour & Employment. The objective of the Prime Minister’s Shram
Awards Scheme is to recognize the workmen both from public and private sector
organizations at the national level for their outstanding contributions,
distinguished record of performance and devotion to duty of a high order.
The Central Labour Institute (CLI),
Mumbai was conceived by the Government of India during the first 5-year Plan as
a center for research, training and consultancy on the various aspects of
industrial work related to the human factor.
The Institute commenced its activities in a rented building in 1961. The first Prime Minister of India, Late
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, laid the foundation stone of the CLI building. It was shifted to its present premises in
1966 when Late Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan inaugurated the building on
The activities of the institute are
geared to improve work methods and working conditions so as to enhance the
safety, health and productivity of the industrial workers and in general, his
quality of work life. In this endeavor the
CLI interacts with the state factory inspectorates, employers’ associations,
trade unions, and professional bodies and institutes concerned with the
matter. Further, the ILO/ARPLA has
designated the institute as a center of excellence for training in labour
administration for Asian and Pacific countries. It is the national center of International Occupational Safety
and Health Information Centre (CIS, ILO Geneva) for
The divisions in CLI are organized as
given below:
·
Evolution of a safety movement in the country
·
Creation of national awareness on safety
·
Development of infra-structure on safety at national level
through competence building
·
Training of Inspectors of Factories and technical support
for effective enforcement of Factories Act, 1948 by providing latest techniques
·
Arranging training for enforcement officials from the
Developing Countries.
National
surveys are undertaken to study the prevailing status of working conditions,
standards and the level of safety performance in particular industries and
operations as is necessary for planning.
Unit level studies are carried out
with the objective of assessing the safety related problems and formulating
recommendations for improvement for the benefit of the unit.
Consultancy studies are undertaken in
the areas of Occupational Safety, at the request of the Managements or
Government Agencies like Factory Inspectorates. The objective is to assess the
deviation from safety norms and standards and recommending feasible corrective
steps.
In
keeping with its pioneering role in the field of industrial safety, the
Division has been conducting training for the benefit of foreign delegates,
comprising Factory Inspectors and Labour Administrators under various technical
cooperation schemes such as Colombo Plan, Special Commonwealth African
Assistance Programme (SCAAP), and Commonwealth Fellowship for technical
co-operation and nominees from ILO,
Specialized training courses are
conducted for identified target groups such as Senior Managers, Safety
Officers, Supervisors, Competent Persons, Trade Union Officials and Safety
Committee Members from the industry. Significant courses are:
·
Basic Course for Inspectors of Factories nominated by State
Governments.
·
Refresher course for Senior Inspectors nominated by State
Governments.
·
Testing and examination of lifting machinery, lifting
tackles and pressure vessels
·
Safety audit
·
Refresher course for Safety Officers
·
Training program for Trade Union Leaders
·
Functioning of Safety Committees
·
Safety Management Techniques and Loss Control in Industries
·
Industrial Ventilation, Noise and Illumination Hazards
Certificate
Courses:
The
Division conducts:
A One Year full time Advanced Diploma
Course in Industrial Safety (ADIS) is conducted with the objective of providing
qualified Safety Officers to the Industrial, Construction and Port Sectors to
enable them to meet with statutory obligations.
The
Division has the following facilities:
·
Industrial Safety, Health and
·
Workshop
Industrial
Safety, Health and
A
unique center for arousing awareness on Safety and Health. The Industrial
Safety, Health and
Mobile Safety Exhibition
The
Division has a Mobile Safety Exhibition Van equipped with various models,
panels and safety exhibits. This van is taken to the doorsteps of the industries/
organizations in the States of Maharashtra,
The Workshop provides engineering support to the industrial
safety, health and
The Construction Safety division undertakes activities like
collection of data related to manpower, accidents and dangerous occurrences in
the construction sector of the country and training of managerial and
supervisory personnel at the national and international levels with the
assistance of international agencies, and workers’ and employers’ associations.
Safety and
Health for Engineers working in Construction Industry
A two
months certificate course on Safety and Health for Engineers working in
Construction Industry is conducted. The objective of this course is to impart
sufficient knowledge and information to combat the hazards associated with the
construction industry and ways and means to overcome them.
The Industrial Hygiene division is concerned with the
improvement of industrial work environment and comprises Industrial Hygiene
Laboratory (IHL), Respiratory Equipment Testing Laboratory (RETL) and
Non-Respiratory Equipment Testing Laboratory (NRETL).
The division undertakes various studies / surveys, national
projects and training courses to protect the health of industrial workers
through identification, evaluation, and control of occupational health hazards
and advises the management on ways to meet the requirements prescribed in the
Second Schedule (under Sction 41F) to the Factories (Amendment) Act, 1987.
Respiratory
Equipment Testing Laboratory (RETL)
The RETL tests the performance and
efficiency of indigenous respiratory personal protective equipment such as dust
respirators and canisters/cartridge gas respirators, etc. and adviser
manufacturers on improvements required to meet prescribed standards.
Non-Respiratory
Equipment Testing Laboratory (NRETL):
The NRETL carries out the testing of
indigenous non-respiratory personal protective equipment such as safety shoes,
safety helmets, safety goggles, eye protectors, etc. This personal protective equipment is tested as per the
specifications set by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). Based on the test reports, technical advice
and guidance on quality improvement are suggested to the entrepreneurs and
manufacturers. User industries are also
advised on proper selection, use, care and maintenance of various personal
protective equipment.
The
division also organizes training courses in the areas of Industrial Hygiene for
the specific group of industries given in the First Schedule, Section 2 (cb) of
the Factories (Amendment) Act, 1987.
These training courses are meant to help safety officers, chemists,
supervisors and middle level managers in the identification, assessment and
control of occupational hazards in their factories.
INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING
DIVISION
The
Industrial Engineering Division is concerned with the improvement in the
different industrial aspects such as Noise, Illumination and Ventilation at the
work place. The division undertakes
studies in the area of level of Noise, Illumination and Ventilation in the
various industries.
The Industrial Medicine division aims
to prevent and contain various health hazards at the workplace brought in by
industrialization. The hazards may
arise from physical, chemical, biological, ergonomic and psychological factors
at the place of work.
Occupational
health studies and surveys covering particular industries like asbestos,
dyestuff, cement, chemical, engineering and ports, are carried out to assess
the prevalence of occupational diseases.
The division also runs a National Referral Diagnostic center to diagnose
occupational diseases. Suitable recommendations such as medical surveillance,
use of personal protective equipment, facilities for personal hygiene and
first-aid, etc. are made to prevent and control health hazards.
The division also carries out
training, two major ones being the training of factory medical officers and
workers on occupational health aspects and first-aid. It has also started a three-month postgraduate course in
industrial health (AFIH) for factory medical officers from March 1993.
The laboratory attached to the
division has state of the art facilities for medical investigations including
visual acuity tests, audiometric evaluation, and pulmonary function tests etc.
The Industrial
Physiology Division undertakes research and development work, as well as
consultancy services in the areas of Occupational Physiology with a view to
improving work and working conditions of industrial work environment.
Research studies carried out by the
division are in the following three major areas:
In
the areas of ergonomics the emphasis has been laid on the evaluation of work,
workers & workstation, working environment, postural stress, psychological
stress including bio-mechanics. The
mis-match between man and machine being corrected with the help of
anthropometric data from different regions of the country. Besides this, collection of anthropometric
data from different regions of the country, which can be used in the design of
workstation, machinery, equipment, tools, etc.
The various repetitive motions along with various physical factors such
light, noise, vibration, illuminations are also being studied and helps
industries to maintain all those physical factors within optimum limit.
The division conducts specialized
training courses (in-house as well as in-plant) such as industrial ergonomics,
industrial fatigue, management of occupational stress, industrial heat stress
and heat disorders, occupational back pain, anthropometry for work station
design, physiological basis for manual material handling being offered from
time to time etc.
The main
objective of the division is creation and operation of reference service on
occupational safety and health, to act as a
Major Activities being carried out
by the division are:
Development of National Inventory
on
The
division has taken up the task of developing National Inventory on
Design and maintenance of DGFASLI
website
In order
to disseminate information on OSH so as to reach the large work force, safety
and health professionals and agencies engaged in safety and health, DGFASLI
launched its website with the URL http://www.dgfasli.nic.in. This website is being maintained by the
division and since last four years of its launch it has received tremendous
response from the end-users based in
Databases on occupational safety
and health
Databases
in the area of Major Accident Hazard Installations, hazardous chemicals,
national specialist, ship inspection, Parliament question, FAS proforma,
Factories Act Amendment, Awards etc. have been developed
The
division is also working on translation of International Chemical Safety cards
in 3 Indian languages – Hindi, Tamil and Bangla. At present the first batch of 57 International Chemical Safety
Cards in Hindi have been ported on to the website and are available for free
download.
Publication
of Quarterly Newsletter INDOSHNEWS
This
quarterly newsletter is intended to reach to the people round the globe and
bring about awareness in matters related to safety and health, highlight
important issues, latest developments, current events in the area of safety and
health It includes abstract on material safety data sheets, book reviews,
finding of the studies and other relevant information on occupational safety
and health training programmes. Till date 33 issues have been published.
CIS National Centre For
India
The
division operates the CIS National Centre for
·
Microfiche reference
·
Awareness on current events
·
Information access through CD-ROMs published by
international agencies such as ILO, WHO, etc.
·
MSDS – made available to the industry on request
·
DISPERSION MODELS - The center provides support for
developing dispersion models of accident release of gases and chemicals
Library-Cum-Information Centre
The library has about 20,000
volumes on the various disciplines dealt with by the Institute. About 100
Indian and foreign journals are also available in the library. The people refer
to the library from the industry and post-graduate students of professional
courses besides the faculty of the institute
Digital library has also been started for the benefit of the
end users to provide information available in electronic form. Information received from ILO, WHO, CCINFO,
etc. have been included in the digital library and can be accessed from
multi-locations over Local Area Network.
Abstracts of safety and health technical reports of the
studies, surveys carried out by DGFASLI have been prepared. A national directory of organisation profile
has been compiled.
PRODUCTIVITY DIVISION
The productivity division’s
objectives are improving productivity and working conditions and promoting
labour-managed cooperation in industrial units, thus contributing to quality of
work life.
The above objectives are sought to
achieve through training courses and consultancy projects. In consultancy projects a management-labour
project team is invariably developed and the experts of the division work as
technical consultants and catalysts to the team.
Some of the courses conducted by the
division are as Public Training Programmes as well as Inplant Training
Programmes:
National Study on occupational health
safety management systems (OHS-MS) based on international labour organization
(ILO) Guidelines and is contemplating to design & develop special training
programme on OHS-MS for effective implementation of management systems (M.S.)
in occupational safety health (
Manpower planning job evaluation,
productivity improvement, organization and methods and wage incentives are some
of the consultancy areas.
STAFF TRAINING DIVISION
The International Labour Organization
organized a pilot project on supervisory training in
The division --
The
division is conducting Public/Inplant Training Programmes on the following
topics:
·
Personal Growth & Group Dynamics for Improving Health &
Safety at Work.
·
Effective Supervision for Results.
·
Training Methodology for Trainers
Also the division
conducts One Month Specialized Course in Safety & Health for Supervisory
Personnel Working in Hazardous Process Industries. Under Section 41C(b) of the
Factories Act 1948, as amended in 1987 has imposed specific responsibilities of
the occupier in relation to the hazardous processes which states that every
occupier of the factory involving any hazardous process shall appoint person
who possess qualification and experience in handling hazardous substances and
are competent to supervise such handling within the factory and the Chief
Inspector may require the supervisor to undergo training in Health &
Safety. Realizing the need of the
course, the one-month Certificate Course has been started at to provide an
opportunity to gain insight to safety system and procedures. After this course, the participants will be
able to discuss/identify hazards and their control that will result in the
great degree of risk reduction.
Over a period of time the activities
have expanded to cover the training of management and trade union
representatives to help organization, create a climate conducive for the
development and productivity. Towards this
end, new courses for managers, supervisors, trade union representatives and
bipartite forums covering socio-psychological and team building aspects have
been developed and conducted.
Further, to promote voluntary
involvement of workers at the grass root level and for developing their
capabilities in solving their job related problems, Quality Circle projects are
undertaken.
The division has embarked upon the
training of supervisory trainers in chemical industries and trainers of
dockworkers to help organization discharge their training responsibility o
safety and health aspects under the amended Factories Act and the Dock Workers
(Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, respectively. These training in turn undertake the
training of supervisors/workers on safety and health aspects in their
organizations.
The Industrial Psychology division is concerned with the
assessment and evaluation of the nature of work, working conditions and work
organisation. By carrying out
multi-disciplinary studies, surveys and training courses, ways are sought for
better management of human resources to ensure safety, health and welfare of
the employees.
The main areas of research are:
·
Psycho-social aspects of safety management
·
Quality of work life
·
Assessment and management of occupational stress
·
Mental health in industry
·
Psychological testing.
The division undertakes consultancy studies and conducts
training courses to bring about attitudinal and behavioural changes among
workers, supervisors and senior managers in the areas related to safety, health
and welfare at workplace. Some of the
training courses are:
·
Managing stress at work
·
Counseling for safety and health.
·
Management of human factors in safety and health
·
Participative approach for safety and health at work
·
Psychological testing for scientific personnel selection and
placement.
·
Promoting well-being at the work place.
The
Communication division has been set up to produce video films, audio visual
aids and preparation and publication of booklets, pamphlets, leaflets, etc. on
occupational safety and health aspects to create public awareness. It also provides audio-visual facility,
centrally, to support the various activities of the organisation and is
planning to develop computer aided instruction packages (interactive video
programmes) on safety and health. The
division comprises the following:
·
Audio Visual Studio
·
Art Section
·
Film Library
Under the
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Project on
“Industrial Safety and Health Development (IS&HD) programme,” a modern
Audio Visual Studio equipped with the latest video equipment has been set up at
Central Labour Institute, Mumbai. The
studio has all the infrastructural facilities.
It is manned by experts to produce commercial quality U-matic video
films on safety and health. The studio
also has the facility to transfer U-matic video films on VHS format for use in
various training courses. These films
will be made available to those interested in propagating the message of safety
and health to all personnel in factories and docks.
Presently a
corporate image building film for the organisation and the films for the port
and small-scale sector are under production.
Films on other sectors will be produced as an ongoing activity. In view of the fact that self-paced learning
is gaining importance as an effective training technique, greater emphasis will
be placed on the production of interactive video programmes in future.
This section produces visual aids to
promote and create awareness on safety and health under the guidance of subject
experts. For this purpose, they create
the artwork for publicity materials like panels, posters, illustrations,
paintings, models etc. They take up the
jobs of designing and printing booklets, pamphlets / leaflets brought out by
the organisation. They also provide
creative support to the production of video films.
The Film Library is equipped with
overhead projectors automatic slide projectors, 16mm film projectors, VHS video
camera, etc. to provide audio visual support to various training activities of
the organisation. A number of latest
still photographic cameras are available to provide photographic support to
th4e activities of the institute and preparation of slides etc. It has a large and varied collection of 16mm
and video films covering latest areas of safety, health, productivity and
management aspects.
MAJOR ACCIDENT HAZARD CONTROL
The Major Accident Hazards
Control Advisory (MAHCA) division was added to the CLI in 1987 as one of the
outputs of the ILO project "Establishment and Initial Operation of Major
Accident Hazards Control System".The project was executed by the DGFASLI
in close collaboration with Factory Inspectorates of the various States and
The important achievements are :
The division offers the following services :
The Central
Labour Institute, Mumbai has the following facilities;
·
Auditorium and Conference Rooms
·
Hostel
The Central
Labour Institute has an auditorium with a seating capacity of about 300
persons. It has 3 air-conditioned
conference rooms, fully equipped with audio visual aids. Two conference rooms have a seating capacity
of approximately 30 persons each and one conference room for 15 persons. A fully furnished classroom having a seating
capacity of 60 students is also available.
The
institute also has a well-furnished hostel with facility for catering to both
the international and national level participants.
The Regional
Labour Institutes (RLIs) located at Madras, Kanpur and Calcutta are scaled down
version of the Central Labour Institute, Mumbai and are located in such a way
that each institute serves one region of the country. These institutes are accordingly equipped in the following areas:
·
Industrial Safety
·
Industrial Hygiene
·
Industrial Medicine
·
Computerised Data Bank
·
Major Accident Hazards Control
·
Staff Training and Productivity
·
Communication.
The
facilities available in the Regional Labour Institutes are:
·
Industrial Safety, Health &
·
Mobile Safety Exhibition
·
Auditorium and Conference Hall
·
Hostel.
The Regional
labour Institute,
The Regional
Labour Institute,
REGIONAL
LABOUR INSTITUTE, KOLKATA
The Regional
Labour Institute,
FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES OF DGFASLI ORGANISATION:
1. Rendering
advice and carrying out support research activities for the administration of
the Factories Act, 1948 and the Dock Workers (Safety, Health and Welfare) Act,
1986.
2. Co-coordinating
technical and legal activities to facilitate uniform standards of enforcement
of safety and health in manufacturing and port sectors.
3. Administration
of the Dock Workers (Safety, Health & Welfare) Act, 1986 and Regulations
framed there under and enforcing these in the major ports of the country.
4. Educating
and training employers and employees on matters relating to safety and health.
5. Conducting
promotional activities by operating schemes for recognition of good suggestions
under Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar and good safety performance under National
Safety Awards on behalf of the Ministry.
6. Co-operating
with International agencies like ILO, WHO, UNDP and advising Central Government
in the adoption of international standards concerning safety and health.
7. Training
of foreign nationals and rendering expert advice to developing countries.
8. Building
Competence of enforcement agencies.
9. Issuing
approval to flameproof electrical enclosures.
10. Collecting
and disseminating information and material relating to safety and health.