Intervention of Shri Muni Lall, Minister of State for Labour, Government of India at the Plenary of the 90th Session of the International Labour Conference on the Protocol dealing with Recording and Notification of Occupational Accidents and Diseases.  

          Mr. Chairman, 

            I thank you for giving me this opportunity to intervene on the subject of the Recording and Notification of Occupational Accidents and Diseases in the Plenary where a Protocol on the above subject has been taken up for adoption.  We welcome this initiative not only because we think it is very important to provide occupational safety and health facilities to all our workers, but also because India treats human life as the most valuable on the globe.  Life is more valuable than any property in the universe.  Every action on the globe revolves around the human being and hence the occupational safety is of prime importance for us to protect it.

            We were informed that, as per the estimates of the ILO, a total of two million people die every year in the world due to occupational accidents and diseases at the work place.  The figure is very high, and we would welcome every attempt to bring it down.  We also welcome the need to systematise the notification procedures, collection of figures etc. because there is a universal feeling that these figures are under-reported everywhere.  We have a long history of legislation relating to occupational safety and health practices in our country.  The Constitution of India contains specific provision on occupational safety and health of the workers.  The Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) and the Directorate General of Factory Advice Service and Labour Institutes (DGFASLI) are the two field organizations of the Ministry of Labour which are striving to achieve the above principles enshrined in our Constitution.

            This year the Directorate General of Mines Safety in India has celebrated its centenary of glorious service of the toiling mine workers.  The organization has a vast field machinery  which has stood the test of time.  The average accident rate per 1000 persons in coalmines has come down from 0.61 in the decade between 1951-1961 to 0.27 in the last decade.  The organization had also carried out 9501 inspections and 11,015 inquiries in 2000.

            Similarly, the DGFASLI functions as the technical arm of the Ministry in regard to matters concerning with safety, health and welfare of workers in factories as well as ports and docks.  It assists the Union Government in formulation and review of policy and legislation on occupational safety and health matters in factories and ports.  The organization also provides training to the various Central and State Government officials of the Labour Departments.  In the last five years, over 7000 inspections of ships and oil tankers were carried out.  The numbers of reported accidents have also declined in the last five years.

            The Government of India has also instituted awards known as the National Safety Awards.  These awards are presented by the Hon’ble Vice President of India to the workers with an outstanding record in safety.

Mr. Chairman,

            We have participated in the discussions of the Committee with the above background.  We had provided our views in reply to the questionnaire which was circulated by the ILO.  While we had agreed with most of the items in the draft Protocol circulated for discussion, we had also indicated our position and difficulties in accepting certain formulations.  The spirit of the Protocol is highly laudable.  However, acceptance of some of the formulations would be possible only when the Protocol is flexible, practical and implementable.

            The situation in the area of incidence of occupational accidents and diseases varies from country to country.  Collecting information about accidents and diseases is relatively easy in developed and smaller countries.  India is a federal democracy where the State governments are also the implementing agencies for recording and notifying incidents of occupational accidents and diseases.  Collecting details at the State level and then analysing, notifying and publishing the same at the Central level is a time-consuming exercise.

Mr. Chairman,

            In view of the above, we had suggested during the discussions through an amendment that statistics should be collected, analysed and published after giving the national Governments adequate time for collecting qualitative data.  The adopted Protocol has not accepted this amendment and had reiterated its original intention of asking the national Governments to collect all the details, analyse and publish them annually.

            You are aware that for a Protocol, which is a legally binding instrument for the national Government, flexibility is an essential ingredient to facilitate ratification.  I would, therefore, urge you to see that such important initiatives have an inbuilt provision for providing flexibility to facilitate implementation by the national Governments.

            Mr. Chairman,

            I would end by reassuring this august assembly here that India gives matters concerning industrial and occupational safety and health the utmost importance, and with a request that highly scientific and ultramodern technology should be developed on international level to counter the fatal accidents in mines.  We have also decided to give the highest priority to this subject in our national five-year plans.

            Thank you.

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