THE CONTEXT: The ever-growing mechanisation, electrification, chemicalisation and sophistication have made industrial jobs more and more complex and intricate leading to increased dangers to human life in industries through accidents and injuries. In fact, the same underline the need for and importance of industrial safety. This article discusses about the industrial disaster related problems, measures and possible solutions.
DEFINING INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT
- An industrial accident may be defined as “an occurrence which interrupts or interferes with the orderly progress of work in an industrial establishment.
- According to the Factories Act of 1948, it is “an occurrence in an industrial establishment causing bodily injury to a person which makes him unfit to resume his duties in the next 48 hours.
In other words, it is an unexpected event which is neither anticipated nor designed to occur. It is always sudden, for a gradual process does not constitute an accident.
SOME MAJOR INCIDENTS
- Bhopal Gas Tragedy, 1984
- A chlorine gas leak at Jamshedpur (2008),
- A fire at an Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) platform at Bombay High (2005),
- A toluene fire at a Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd factory in Mohali (2003),
- A chlorine gas leak in Vadodara (2002) that affected 250 people.
- Ammonia gas leaked at Oswal Chemicals and Fertilisers Ltd at Paradip, Odisha, in 1999 during a supercyclone,
- An earthquake damaged a phosphoric acid sludge containment at Bhuj, Gujarat, in 2001.
Recent incidents
- On 20th August 2020, a major fire broke out in late night hours, in an underground hydroelectric power plant in Srisailam in the state of Telangana. The fire blaze killed 9 people, including 5 engineers.
- On 7th May 2020, a gas leak from the LG Polymers plant in Visakhapatnam, which was operating without environmental clearance for over two decades, killed 12 people and sickened hundreds.
ISSUES RELATED TO THE INDUSTRIAL DISASTERS
Less attention
- Since May 2020, there have been 30 industrial accidents in India, killing at least 75 workers, according to IndustriALL, a global union of workers.
- From 2014 to 2017, 8,004 such incidents occurred in Indian workplaces killing 6,368 employees.
- Most such incidents took place in Delhi, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
Industrial reforms v/s Industrial safety
- The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion has identified about 400 plus reforms, some of which have an adverse impact on industrial safety.
- The government, as part of these reforms, is dismantling the inspection system which overlooked regulations to a self-certification system or third-party certification.
Issue of decommissioning
- There is no proper mechanism for decommissioning of power plants for example the atomic power plants which have completed their lifespan of 30-40 years have still not been decommissioned.
- Even the Nuclear Liability Act is inadequate to deal with such disasters.
Inadequate compensation
- Inadequate compensation policy for example the inadequacy of the compensation under the PLI Act, which is the only legislation we have for compensating victims of tragedies such as Bhopal and Vizag, is best highlighted by the amount offered which was too less.
MEASURES TAKEN BY THE GOVERNMENT
- 1948-Draft regulations on the control of, major accident hazards were first prepared as model rules that were then notified to the states under the Factories Act of 1948.
- 1987 amendment-One important change that followed Bhopal and the oleum gas leak case came in 1987, when the Factories Act, 1948, was amended to extend the scope of risk from such industries. What used to be a narrowly defined scope covering only workers and the premises of the factory was extended to the general public in the vicinity of the factory.
- 1989-The Ministry of Environment and Forests included the rules as the ‘Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989’ under the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 which detail and catalogue chemicals deemed “hazardous” entering the country, the port of entry and the quantity imported.
- The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991, which is an insurance meant to provide relief to persons affected by accidents that occur while handling hazardous substances.
- The Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness, and Response) Rules, 1996, which address gas leaks and similar events.
- Chemical Accidents (Emergency, Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules, 1996: Centre is required to constitute a central crisis group for management of chemical accidents; set up quick response mechanism termed as the crisis alert system. Each state is required to set up a crisis group and report on its work.
- The Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008, fix responsibility on those who have control over a facility dealing with such hazardous substances, and those who import, handle or transport such waste, making them “liable for all damages caused to the environment or third party” as well as payment of “financial penalties”.
- The National Green Tribunal (NGT),which was set up by an Act of Parliament in 2010 for the Public Liability Insurance Act would provide interim relief and that the tribunal would determine the final compensation. The Act also provides for the “principle of no fault liability”, which means that the company can be held liable even if it had done everything in its power to prevent the accident.
- Factory Advice Service and Labour Institute– The Government has set up Factory Advice Service and Labour Institute, Bombay, which functions as an integral body to advise Government, industry and other interests concerned with matters relating to safety, health and welfare of factory workers.
- National Program for Co-ordinated Action Plan – The Government has drawn up a “National Program for Co-ordinated Action Plan” for control of hazards, and protection of occupational health and safety workers in dangerous manufacturing processes. The Action Plan lists out the responsibilities of the Government, management and workers’ organisations in the field of safety and health in work environment, and includes ‘Model Scheme for setting up Full Safety Control System Cell’ in hazardous industries and ‘Safety and Health Accidents Reduction Action Plan’ (SAHARA) in all industries.
- National Safety Council– National Safety Council was set up in 1966 to promote safety consciousness among workers to prevent accidents, minimise dangers and mitigate human sufferings, conduct programs, lectures and conferences safety.
- National Safety Awards– To give recognition to good safety performance on the part of industrial undertakings and to stimulate and maintain the interest of both the managements and the workers in accident prevention programs, the Central Government instituted in 1965 the National Safety Awards.
WHAT SHOULD BE DONE
Some of the steps for ensuring safety and preventing industrial disasters are:
Intervention at the Managerial Level
- Management should assess the overall workplace safety aspects and possible threats or hazards.
- Drafting safety policy according to the assessment of the possible threats. Safety policy implementation & follow-up should be taken on a regular basis.
- Safety Training & drills on a periodic basis.
- Workload assessment and Equipment and maintenance audit on regular basis for the proper assessment of hazards.
Technological Interventions
The technological interventions refer to technology-audit and ensuring that better technologies are used and employed in the organizations that enhance safety aspects.
- Design and construction of plant and workplace should be safe.
- Arrangement of machinery equipment and material should be such as to eliminate risk of accident.
- Machines and equipments should be kept in good working conditions.
- Good working environment free from noise, pollution, and other environmental hazards should be ensured.
- Use of fire-retardant materials in construction, dual exits, easy vertical escape routes using staircases and alarm systems should be the part of safety codes.
Training and Placement Side
- Great cares should be taken while selecting persons for the jobs only skilled persons should be selected to handle machinery and equipment.
- Workers should be given proper in plant training and education regarding safety and use of safety devices.
Behavioural Interventions
- Making safety at workplace a way of life rather than a periodic inspection issue is the real challenge.
- Safety should become everyone’s agenda rather than being an enforcement issue.
- Zero tolerance for any unsafe practice or unsafe act, zero procrastination of safety aspects, prioritizing safety over everything are some of the desired behaviour from employees especially from managers.
Government interventions
- Once government allows setting up a factory manufacturing hazardous substances or is otherwise hazardous, it is essential for government to ensure an adequate buffer zone and not permit people to stay around in that zone or allow any business shops or constructions therein.
- The central crisis group is required to constantly monitor post-accident situations, conduct analyses of these accidents and suggest preventive steps to avoid recurrence.
- Effective monitoring and regular follow up of safety measures.
ACCOUNTABILITY NEED TO BE FIXED
- After the Bhopal gas tragedy the judiciary evolved what came to be called the Doctrine of Absolute Responsibility in a case of oleum gas leak from a Delhi Cloths Mill factory.
- In a public interest litigation (1986) a five-judge bench of the apex court defined “absolute liability” as an enterprise which is engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous industry which poses a potential threat to the health and safety of the persons working in the factory and residing in the surrounding areas owes an absolute and non-delegable duty to the community to ensure that no harm results to anyone on account of hazardous or inherently dangerous nature of the activity which it has undertaken,”
- In the judgement court also said that compensation needs to have a “deterrent effect” and must be reflect the “magnitude and capacity of the enterprise”. The larger and more prosperous the enterprise, the greater must be the amount of compensation payable by it, the court said.
- Accountability of local administration is also need to be fixed as the administration is responsible for safety measures is being taken or not by the enterprise.
WAY FORWARD
- There are so many rules and regulations related to industrial disasters but the questions arises as to what extent are these laws relevant today? Have they been effectively used? Or is there a need for a more comprehensive law?
- Major risks are recognized, but preventive laws are generally inadequate to cope with hazards and emergencies. The enforcement efforts of the governmental agencies concerned with the protection of workers, the public, and the environment need to be properly coordinated.
- With industrialisation and a growing number of industries using hazardous substances, our legislative framework is no longer in sync with the changing times.
CONCLUSION: In this era of competition, market volatility and uncertainty there may be sometimes a tendency to cut-corners when it comes to safety issues. No such steps must be permitted that endangers lives of the employees or of any other member of the society due to operations of an organization.
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