Section 34 of the Factories Act 1948: Excessive Weights
Section 34 was a workplace-safety provision intended to prevent factory workers from being required to lift, carry or move loads so heavy that they were likely to cause injury.
What Section 34 provided
Section 34 - Excessive weights
Sub-section (1): No person could be employed in a factory to lift, carry or move a load so heavy as to be likely to cause injury.
Sub-section (2): The State Government could make rules prescribing maximum weights that could be lifted, carried or moved by adult men, adult women, adolescents and children employed in factories, classes or descriptions of factories, or specified processes.
The wording above is a concise explanation of the former Section 34. For historical statutory text, refer to the official Factories Act publication linked below.
Meaning and purpose of the former provision
The expression excessive weights referred to loads whose lifting, carrying or movement was sufficiently heavy to be likely to cause injury to the person employed. The provision imposed a direct safety restriction and also enabled State Governments to prescribe maximum permissible weights for different categories of workers and different factory operations.
In practical terms, compliance required attention not merely to the numerical weight of a load but also to the risk of injury arising from the work. Applicable rules, workplace conditions, the nature of the task and the category of worker were relevant to determining the permitted method of handling a load.
Current law after repeal of the Factories Act 1948
The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 is now the principal central statute governing occupational safety and working conditions in this field. Section 6 places general duties on employers, including the duty to ensure that the workplace is free from hazards that cause or are likely to cause injury or occupational disease and, so far as reasonably practicable, to provide a working environment that is safe and without risk to employees' health.
Section 23 of the OSH Code separately makes the employer responsible for maintaining prescribed health, safety and working conditions. The detailed regulatory framework must therefore be read with the Code, the applicable rules, standards, notifications and any valid saved provisions relevant to the establishment and jurisdiction.
Repeal and savings under Section 143 of the OSH Code
Section 143 expressly repeals the Factories Act, 1948. It also contains savings provisions for actions, rules, regulations, bye-laws, notifications, appointments, orders and directions made under the repealed enactments, to the extent and for the period provided by the saving clause. Historical compliance questions should therefore be examined with reference to the date of the event and the transitional provisions.
Official legal resources
For the current position, consult the Ministry of Labour and Employment - OSH Code 2020, the commencement notification S.O. 5321(E) dated 21 November 2025, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026. The historical text is available in the official Factories Act, 1948 PDF.
Key takeaway
Section 34 of the Factories Act, 1948 formerly prohibited employment involving a load likely to cause injury and empowered State Governments to prescribe maximum weights. From 21 November 2025, the Factories Act is no longer the operative central enactment; workplace lifting and handling safety should be assessed under the OSH Code, 2020 and the rules, standards and other legally applicable instruments in force for the establishment.
Last reviewed: 26 September 2026