Section 77 of the Factories Act 1948 - Certain Other Provisions of Law Not Barred
Section 77 formed part of Chapter VII of the Factories Act, 1948, dealing with the employment of young persons. Its purpose was to make clear that the safeguards in that Chapter operated in addition to the child-employment law then in force and did not displace that law.
Text of Section 77
Meaning of Section 77
The expression "in addition to, and not in derogation of" meant that Chapter VII of the Factories Act did not exclude or reduce protections available under the separate child-employment legislation. Where both statutory schemes applied, the Factories Act provisions concerning young persons were intended to operate alongside the other applicable law.
In practical terms, compliance with the former Factories Act provisions relating to young workers did not, merely by itself, excuse non-compliance with a separate law regulating or prohibiting child employment.
Why the Reference to the Employment of Children Act 1938 Is Historical
The statute expressly named in Section 77 was the Employment of Children Act, 1938. That Act was repealed by section 22 of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986. The 1986 legislation is now titled the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986.
Accordingly, the wording of old Section 77 should not be read as indicating that the 1938 Act remains in force.
Current Law After 21 November 2025
The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 consolidated occupational safety and working-condition legislation, including the Factories Act, 1948. The Code came into force on 21 November 2025. Section 143 contains the repeal and savings framework for the enactments absorbed into the Code.
For present-day questions involving employment of children or adolescents, the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 must also be considered. Its current scheme prohibits employment of children in occupations and processes, subject to statutory exceptions, and separately prohibits employment of adolescents in specified hazardous occupations and processes.
Legal Significance of the Old Provision
Section 77 remains useful when reading historical records, disputes, inspections, prosecutions or other matters governed by the Factories Act before its repeal, subject to the applicable repeal and savings provisions. It also illustrates the legislative approach that factory-specific safeguards for young persons were not intended to dilute protections created by separate child-labour legislation.
Related Provisions
For the surrounding historical scheme, see Section 76 - Power to make rules and Section 78 - Application of Chapter VIII.
This page explains a repealed statutory provision for legal research and historical reference. For a current compliance question, the applicable provisions of the OSHWC Code, rules and notifications, child and adolescent labour law, and relevant State or Union Territory requirements should be checked.