Section 87 Factories Act 1948 - Dangerous Operations

Section 87 of the Factories Act, 1948 empowered the State Government to regulate manufacturing processes or operations that exposed factory workers to a serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning or disease. The provision is now principally relevant to the historical law, saved rules and proceedings arising before the labour-code transition.

Current law update: The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 came into force on 21 November 2025. Section 143 of that Code repealed the Factories Act, 1948. The present statutory provision dealing with dangerous operations in factories is Section 82 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020. Saved rules, notifications, orders and actions under the repealed enactments continue to the extent permitted by Section 143.

At a glance

Old provision: Section 87, Factories Act, 1948.
Subject: Dangerous manufacturing processes and operations.
Factories Act status: Repealed from 21 November 2025 under Section 143 of the OSHWC Code.
Current corresponding provision: Section 82, Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.
Rule-making authority under current Section 82: The appropriate Government.

Meaning and purpose of dangerous operations

For the purpose of the former Section 87, a dangerous operation was a manufacturing process or operation carried on in a factory which, in the opinion of the State Government, exposed persons employed there to a serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning or disease. The section did not itself create a fixed list of dangerous operations. Instead, it conferred rule-making power on the State Government to identify and regulate such processes.

The present Section 82 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 follows the same core safety approach. It enables the appropriate Government to make rules for factories where a manufacturing process or operation exposes employed persons to serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning or disease.

Section 87 of the Factories Act 1948 - historical provision

Under Section 87, where the State Government considered that a manufacturing process or operation in a factory exposed employed persons to a serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning or disease, it could make rules applicable to the relevant factory or class or description of factories. Such rules could:

specify the manufacturing process or operation and declare it dangerous;
prohibit or restrict the employment of women, adolescents or children in that process or operation;
provide for periodic medical examination of persons employed, or seeking employment, in the dangerous process and restrict employment of persons not certified fit, including provision for medical examination fees payable by the occupier;
provide protective measures for persons employed in the process or in the vicinity where it was carried on;
prohibit, restrict or control specified materials or processes connected with the dangerous operation; and
require additional welfare amenities, sanitary facilities, protective equipment and clothing and prescribe standards appropriate to the dangerous nature of the operation.

Historical amendment notes: the expression referring to a manufacturing process or operation was substituted by Act 94 of 1976 with effect from 26 October 1976; related provisions were inserted by the same amendment; and an earlier provision was omitted by Act 20 of 1987 with effect from 1 December 1987.

Current law - Section 82 of the OSHWC Code 2020

Section 82 authorises the appropriate Government to make rules for a factory, or class or description of factories, where a manufacturing process or operation exposes employed persons to serious risk of bodily injury, poisoning or disease. The rules may address the following matters:

specifying a manufacturing process or operation and declaring it dangerous;
prohibiting or restricting the employment of pregnant women in the manufacturing process or operation;
periodic medical examination before or during employment to determine a worker's or employee's fitness, at the occupier's cost; and
welfare amenities, sanitary facilities, protective equipment and clothing, and other requirements necessary for dangerous operations.

Important change from old Section 87 to current Section 82

Point	Former Section 87	Current Section 82
Law	Factories Act, 1948	Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
Rule-making authority	State Government	Appropriate Government
Protected employment category expressly mentioned in the dangerous-operations provision	Women, adolescents and children	Pregnant women
Medical examination	Periodic examination and fitness certification could be prescribed	Periodic examination before or during employment may be prescribed at the occupier's cost
Protective measures	Protection, material/process controls, welfare amenities, sanitation, equipment and clothing	Welfare amenities, sanitation, protective equipment and clothing, plus other requirements necessary for dangerous operations

Section 43 of the OSHWC Code states the general rule that women are entitled to be employed in all establishments for all types of work, subject to the Code and prescribed conditions. Section 44 separately allows the appropriate Government to require adequate safeguards before women are employed in operations considered dangerous to their health and safety. These provisions should therefore be read with Section 82 where the issue concerns employment of women in hazardous or dangerous work.

Repeal and savings under Section 143

Section 143 repealed the Factories Act, 1948 when the OSHWC Code was brought into force. It also contains savings provisions. In substance, actions already taken under the repealed enactments, including rules, regulations, bye-laws, notifications, appointments, orders and directions, are treated as taken under corresponding provisions of the Code and may continue to operate to the extent they are not contrary to the Code until superseded or repealed in accordance with law. Section 143 also preserves the application of Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 to the repeal.

Rules and practical compliance

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026 have been published for matters within Central Government rule-making jurisdiction. Factories must also identify the appropriate Government and examine the applicable State or Union Territory rules, notifications and saved requirements relevant to the particular factory and dangerous process. Compliance should be checked against the current Code, applicable rules, occupational safety standards, medical examination requirements and process-specific safety directions.

Official legal resources

For the authoritative legal text and commencement material, refer to the Government of India sources below. State-specific factory safety requirements should additionally be checked on the website of the concerned State Labour Department, Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health, or equivalent authority.

Related provisions

For historical research under the Factories Act, see Section 87A - Power to prohibit employment on account of serious hazard, Section 88 - Notice of certain accidents, Section 88A - Notice of certain dangerous occurrences, and Section 89 - Notice of certain diseases.

Legal note: This page explains the statutory framework for general information. For a live compliance issue, prosecution, accident, hazardous process or factory inspection, the current Code, applicable rules, notifications and State-specific requirements should be checked for the relevant date and jurisdiction.