BUILDING AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION WORKERS' (REGULATION OF EMPLOYMENT AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE) CENTRAL RULES, 1998

In exercise of the powers conferred under sections 62 and 40 of the Building and Other Construction Workers' (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 (27 of 1996), the Central Government makes the following rules, namely:

PART I
PRELIMINARY
CHAPTER I
1. Short title, application and commencement

• These rules may be called the Building and Other Construction Workers' (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Central Rules, 1998.
• They shall apply to the building or other construction work relating to any establishment in relation to which appropriate Government is the Central Government under the Act.
• They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions
In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires--

"Act" means the Building and Other Construction Workers' (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 (27 of 1996);
• "access" or "egress" means passageways, corridors, stairs, platforms, ladders and any other means to be used by a building worker for normally entering or leaving the work place or for escaping in case of danger;
• "approved" means approved in writing by the Director General or the Central Government as the case may be;
• "base plate" means a plate for distributing the load from a standard in the case of metal scaffolds;
• "bay" in relation to scaffolds, means that portion of the scaffold between horizontal or vertical supports whether standards or supports from which the portion is suspended, which are adjacent longitudinally;
• "brace" means a member incorporated diagonally in a scaffold for stability;
• "bulkhead" means an airtight structure separating the working chamber from free air or from another chamber under a lower pressure than the working pressure;
• "caisson" means an air and watertight chamber in which it is possible for men to work under air pressure greater than atmospheric pressure at sea level to excavate material below water level;



(i) "cofferdam" means a structure constructed entirely or in part below water level or below the level of the water table in the ground and intended to provide a place for work that is free of water;



• "competent person" means a person so approved by the Central Government, who belongs to a testing establishment in India, possessing adequate qualification, experience and skill for the purposes of testing, examination or annealing and certification of lifting appliances, lifting gears, wire ropes or pressure plant or equipment;
• "compressed air" means air mechanically raised to a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure at sea level;
• "construction site" means any site at which any of the processes or operations, related to building or other construction work, are carried on;
• "conveyor" means a mechanical device used in building or other construction work for transport of building material, articles, or packages or solid bulk from one point to another point;
• "danger" means danger of accident or of injury or to health;
• "decanting" means the rapid decompression of persons in a man-lock to atmospheric pressure at sea level followed promptly by their recompression in a decant lock, where they are then decompressed according to the appropriate decompression table in accordance with approved decompression procedures;
• "demolition work" means the work incidental to or connected with the total or partial dismantling or razing of a building or a structure other than a building and includes the removing or dismantling of machines or other equipment;
• "excavation" means the removal of earth, rock or other material in connection with construction or demolition work;
• "falseworks" means the structural supports and bracing for formworks or forms;
• "flashpoint" means the minimum liquid temperature at which a spark or flame causes an instantaneous flash in the vapour space above the liquid;
• "frame or modular scaffold" means a scaffold manufactured in such a way that the geometry of the scaffold is predetermined and the relative spacings of the principal members are fixed;
• "guardrail" means a horizontal rail secured to uprights and erected along the exposed sides of scaffolds, floor openings, runways and gangways to prevent persons from falling;
• "hazard" means danger or potential danger;
• "hazardous substance" means any substance which due to its explosiveness, inflammability, radioactivity, toxic or corrosive properties, or other similar characteristics, may--
• cause injury; or
• affect adversely the human system; or
• cause loss of the life or damage to property on work-environment, while handling, transporting or storing and classified as such under the national standards or in case such national standards do not exist to the generally accepted international standards;
• "high pressure air" means air used to supply power to pneumatic tools and devices;
• "independent tied scaffold" means a scaffold, the working platform of which is supported from the base by two or more rows of standards and which apart from the necessary ties stands completely free of the building;
• "ledger" means a member spanning horizontally and tying scaffolding longitudinally and which acts as a support for putlogs or transom;
• "lifting appliance" means a crane, hoist, derrick, winch, gin pole, sheer legs, jack, pulley block or other equipment used for lifting materials, objects or, building worker;
• "lifting gear" means ropes, chains, hooks, slings and other accessories of a "lifting appliance";
• "lock attendant" means the person in charge of a man-lock or medical lock and who is immediately responsible for controlling the compression, recompression or decompression of persons in such locks;
• "low pressure air" means air supplied to pressurise working chambers and man-locks and medical locks;
• "magazine" means a place in which explosives are stored or kept, whether above or below ground;
• "man-lock" means any lock, other than a medical lock, used for the compression or decompression of persons entering or leaving a working chamber;
• "material hoist" means a power or manually operated and suspended platform or bucket operating in guide rails and used for raising or lowering material exclusively and operated and controlled from a point outside the conveyance;
• "materials lock" means a chamber through which materials and equipments pass from one air pressure environment into another;
• "medical lock" means a double compartment lock used for the therapeutic recompression and decompression of persons suffering from the ill-effects of decompression;
• "national standards" means standards as approved by Bureau of Indian Standards and in the absence of such standards of Bureau of Indian Standards, the standards approved by the Central Government for a specific purpose;
• "outrigger" means a structure projecting beyond the facade of a building with the inner end being anchored and includes a cantilever or other support;
• "plant or equipment" includes any plant, equipment, gear, machinery, apparatus or appliance, or any part thereof;
• "pressure" means air pressure in bars above atmospheric pressure;
• "pressure plant" means the pressure vessel along with its piping and other fittings operated at a pressure greater than the atmospheric pressure;
• "putlog" means a horizontal member on which the board, plank or decking of a working platform are laid;
• "responsible person" means a person appointed by the employer to be responsible for the performance of specific duty or duties and who has sufficient knowledge and experience and the requisite authority for the proper performance of such duty or duties;
• "reveal tie" means the assembly of a tie tube and a fittings used for tightening a tube between two opposite surfaces;
• "right angle coupler" means a coupler, other than a swivel or putlog coupler, used for connecting tubes at right angles;
• "rock bolt" means a mechanical expansion bolt or a bolt used with cementitious or resin anchoring system which is set in drilled hole in the arch or wall of a tunnel to improve rock competency;
• "roofing bracket" means a bracket used in sloped roof construction and having sharp points or other means for fastening to prevent slipping;
• "safety screen" means an air and water tight diaphragm placed across the upper part of a compressed air tunnel between the face and bulkhead, in order to prevent flooding the crown of the tunnel between the safety screen and the bulkhead to provide a safe means of refuge and exit from a flooding or flooded tunnel;
• "safe working load", in relation to an article of lifting gear or lifting appliance, means the load which is the maximum load that may be imposed on such article or appliance with safety in the normal working conditions as assessed and certified by a competent person;
• "scaffold" means any temporarily provided structure on or from which building workers perform work in connection with building or other construction work to which these rules apply, and any temporarily provided structure which enables building workers to obtain access to or which enables materials to be taken to any place at which such work is performed, and includes any working platform, gangway, run, ladder or step-ladder (other than a ladder or step-ladder which does not form part of such structure) together with any guardrail, toe board or other safeguards and all fixings, but does not include lifting appliance or a lifting machine or a structure used merely to support such an appliance or such a machine or to support other plant or equipment;
• "Schedule" means a schedule appended to these rules;
• "segment" includes a cast iron or precast concrete segmented structure formed to the curvature of the tunnel cross-section and used to support the ground surrounding the tunnel;
• "service shaft" means a shaft for the passage of building workers or materials to or from a tunnel under construction;
• "shaft" means an excavation having a longitudinal axis at an angle greater than forty-five degree from the horizontal--
(i) for the passage of building workers or materials to or from a tunnel; or (ii) leading to an existing tunnel;
• "shield" means a moveable frame which supports the working face of a tunnel and the ground immediately behind it and includes equipment designed to excavate and support the excavated areas in a tunnel;
• "sole plate" means a member used to distribute the load from the base plate or the standard of wooden scaffolds to the supporting surface;
• "sound or good construction" means construction conforming to the relevant national standards or in case such national standard do not exist, to other generally accepted international engineering standards or code of practices;
• "sound or good material" means materials of a quality conforming to the relevant national standards or in case such national standards do not exist, to other generally accepted international engineering standards or code of practices;
• "standard" means a member used as a vertical support or column in the construction of scaffolds which transmits a load to the ground or to the solid construction;
• "standard safe operating practices" means the practice followed in building and other construction activities for the safety and health of workers and safe operation of machineries and equipment used in such activities and such practices conforms to all or any of the following, namely:
(i) relevant standards approved by Bureau of Indian Standards; (ii) national building code; (iii) manufacturer's instructions on safe use of equipment and machinery; (iv) code of practice on safety and health in construction industry published by International Labour Organisation and amended from time-to-time;
• "steel rib" includes all steel beams and other structural members shaped to conform to the requirements of a particular tunnel cross section, used for the purpose of supporting and stabilising the excavated areas;
• "suspended scaffold" means a scaffold suspended by means of ropes or chains and capable of being raised or lowered but does not include a boatswain's chair or similar appliance;
• "testing establishment" means an establishment with testing and examination facilities, as approved by the Central Government for carrying out testing, examination, annealing or similar other test or certification of lifting appliances or lifting gear or wire rope as required under these rules;
• "tie" means an assembly used to connect a scaffold to a rigid anchorage;
• "toe board" means a member fastened above a working platform, access landing, access way, wheel barrow run, ramp or other platform to prevent building workers and materials falling therefrom;
• "transom" means a member placed horizontally and used to tie transversely one ledger to another, or one standard to another in an independent tie scaffold;
• "trestle scaffold" includes a scaffold in which the supports for the plait-form are any of the following which are self-supporting, namely:
(i) split heads; (ii) folding; (iii) step-ladder; (iv) tripods; or (v) moveable contrivances similar to any of the foregoing;
• "tubular scaffold" means a scaffold constructed from tubes and couplers;
• "tunnel" means a subterranean passage made by excavating beneath the overburden into which a building worker enters or is required to enter to work;
• "underground" means any space within the confines of a shaft, tunnel, caisson or cofferdam;
• "vehicle" means a vehicle propelled or driven by mechanical or electrical power and includes a trailer, traction engine, tractor, road-building machine and transport equipment;
• "working chamber" means the part of the construction site where work in a compressed air environment is carried out, but does not include a man-lock or medical lock;
• "working platform" means a platform which is used to support building workers or materials and includes a working stage;
• "working pressure" means pressure, in a working chamber, to which building worker is exposed;
• "workplace" means all places where building workers are required to be present or to go for work and which are under the control of an employer.

3. Interpretation of words not defined
Words and expressions not defined in these rules but defined or used in the Act shall have the same meaning as assigned to them in the Act.

4. Savings

The provisions of these rules shall be in addition to and not in substitution for or in diminution of the requirements imposed by the Act.

BUILDING AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION WORKERS' (REGULATION OF EMPLOYMENT AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE) CENTRAL RULES, 1998

CHAPTER II

RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS, ARCHITECTS, PROJECT ENGINEERS AND DESIGNERS, BUILDING WORKERS, ETC.

5. Duties and responsibilities of employers, employees and others

(1) It shall be the duty of every employer who is undertaking any of the operations or works related to or incidental to building or other construction work to which these rules apply--

(a) to comply with such of the requirements of these rules as are related to him:

PROVIDED that the requirements of this clause shall not affect any building worker if and so long as his presence in any place of work is not in the course of performing any work on behalf of his employer and he is not expressly or impliedly authorised or permitted by his employer to do the work; and

(b) to comply with such of the requirements of these rules as are related to him in relation to any work, act or operation performed or about to be performed by him.

(2) It shall be the duty of every employer who erects or alters any scaffold to comply with such of the requirements of the provisions of these rules as relate to the erection or alteration of scaffolds having regard to the purpose or purposes for which the scaffold is designed at the time of erection or alteration; and such employer, who erects, installs, works or uses any plant or equipment to which any of the provisions of these rules apply, shall erect, install, work or use such plant or equipment in a manner which complies with those provisions.

(3) Where a contractor, who is undertaking any of the operations or works to which these rules apply, appoints any artisan, tradesman or other person to perform any work or services under a contract for services, it shall be the duty of the contractor to comply with such of the requirements of these rules as affect that artisan, tradesman or other person and for this purpose any reference in these rules to an employee shall include a reference to such artisan, tradesman or other person and the contractor shall be deemed to be his employer.

(4) It shall be the duty of every employee to comply with the requirements of such of these rules as are related to the performance of or the refraining from an act by him and to co-operate in carrying out these rules.

(5) It shall be the duty of every employer not to permit an employee to do anything not in accordance with the generally accepted principles of standard safe operating practices connected with building and other construction work as specified by the Central Government.

(6) No employee shall do anything which is not in accordance with the generally accepted principles of standard safe operating practices connected with building and other construction work as specified by the Central Government.

(7) No person related with any building and other construction work shall wilfully do any act which may cause injury to himself or to others.

(8) It shall be the duty of every employer not to allow lifting appliance, lifting gear, lifting device, transport equipment, vehicles or any other device or equipment to be used by the building workers which does not comply with the provisions given in these rules.

(9) It shall be the duty of the employer to maintain the latrines, urinals, washing facilities and canteen in a clean and hygienic condition. The canteen shall be located in a place away from the latrines and urinals and polluted atmosphere and at the same time be easily accessible to the building workers.

(10) It shall be the duty of the employer to abide by the dates fixed and notified by him for payment of wages for a period in accordance with these rules and no change in such dates and such period shall be effected without notice to the building workers and the inspector. The employer shall ensure timely payment of wages as specified under these rules and at the place and time notified by him. Where the employer is a contractor, he shall ensure that the wages of building workers are paid in the presence of a representative of the employer of establishment or owner of premises from whom he has taken the work on contract and obtain signatures of such representative in token of having witnessed the payment of wages.

(11) It shall be the duty of the employer to ensure that the lifting appliance, lifting gear, earth moving equipment, transport equipment or vehicles used in the building or other construction work undertaken by him conforms to the requirements relating to testing, examination and inspection of such equipment as provided under these rules. It shall be the duty of every person in the service of the government or any local or other public authority to comply with the requirements relating to him as given in these rules.

6. Responsibilities of architects, project engineers and designers
(1) It shall be the duty of the architect, project engineer or designer responsible for the design of any project or part thereof or any building or other construction work to ensure that, at the planning stage, due consideration is given to the safety and health aspects of the building workers who are employed in the erection, operation and execution of such projects and structures as the case may be.

(2) Adequate care shall be taken by the architect, project engineer and other professionals involved in the project, not to include anything in the design which would involve the use of dangerous structures or other processes or materials, hazardous to health or safety of building workers during the course of erection, operation and execution as the case may be.

(3) It shall also be the duty of the professionals, involved in designing the buildings, structures or other construction projects, to take into account the safety aspects associated with the maintenance and upkeep of the structures and buildings where maintenance and upkeep may involve special hazards.

7. Responsibilities of the persons in the service of the State Government and the Board
It shall be the duty of every person in the service of the Government of any State or a Board to comply with the directions given by the Central Government from time-to-time to carrying into execution in that State the provisions of the Act and these rules.

8. Duties and responsibilities of workers

(1) It shall be the duty of every building worker to comply with the requirements of such of these rules as relate to him, and act and co-operate in carrying out the requirements of these rules and if he discovers any defects in the lifting appliance, lifting gear, lifting device, concerning any transport equipment or other equipment, to report such defects without unreasonable delay to his employer or foreman or other person in authority.

(2) No building worker, shall unless duly authorised or except in case of necessity, remove or interfere with any fencing, gangway, gear, ladder, hatch covering, life-saving appliances, lighting or other things whatsoever required by the Act and these rules to be provided. If any of the aforesaid things is removed, such thing shall be restored at the end of the period during which its removal was necessary, by the persons engaged in that work.

(3) Every building worker, shall use only means of access provided in accordance with these rules and no person shall authorise or order another to use means of access other than such means of access.

(4) It shall be the duty of a building worker to keep the latrines, urinals, washing points, canteen and other facilities provided by the employer for securing his welfare in a clean and hygienic condition.

9. Exemption
The Central Government may, by order in writing and subject to such conditions and for such period, as may be specified therein, exempt from all or any of the requirements of these rules to--


(a) any building or other construction work, if such Government is satisfied that such building work is confined to such workers, where it is not convenient to take measures as provided in these rules; or

(b) any appliance, gear, equipment, vehicle or other device if such Government is satisfied that the requirement of such appliance, gear, equipment, vehicle or other device is not necessary for use for equally effective measures are taken in lieu thereof:

PROVIDED that such Government shall not grant exemption under this rule unless it is satisfied that such exemption would not adversely affect the safety, health and welfare of the building workers.