Enhancing Factory Safety: Understanding Fire Drill Frequency Regulations

Dear All,

I have one query regarding the frequency of Fire Mock Drills to be carried out in a factory. Until now, we have been conducting this every 6 months. However, yesterday an auditor informed us that according to Indian Local Law, it should be carried out every 2 months.

Kindly clarify this doubt and please provide references for this rule.

Thanks

Dear Mr. Vivek Mishra,

I have found the following clause in the Punjab Factories Rules: "Firefighting drills shall be held as often as necessary and at least once every period of two months."

You may check and clarify it with your applicable state factories rules.

Dear Mr. Dilip,

Thank you for your quick response. Let's wait for some others' viewpoint. Also, I forgot to mention in the above post that our factory is situated in Haryana.

Dear Vivek,

As per the West Bengal Factories Rules, 1958, fire-fighting drills shall be held at least once every 2 months (Subs. by W.B. Factories (Amendment) Rules, 1991, dated 27.11.1991). Please check the Haryana Factories Rules as well. As far as I know (if I'm not mistaken), the Punjab Factories Rules are also applicable in Haryana. Please refer to the attachment (page 52).

Regards,
SUBRATA SARKAR

As far as my knowledge goes, the factory laws of Punjab are applicable to the states of Haryana and Chandigarh UT. So what is specified in the Punjab Factory Law for fire mock drills should also apply to the factories in Chandigarh UT and Haryana.

Dear Vivek,

In most states, it is once every two months. Since you are in compliance, you can suggest that your factory conduct the same every month - one month for the general shift and another for the night or any other shift. In this way, you can cover all the employees and fulfill the legal requirement for frequency.

Thank you.

Mock drills shall be conducted once every two months as per factory rules and regulations.

Regards,
Nirav Patel

Dear Viku,

I am requesting you to specify the type of industry you work in. It all depends on the nature of the business you are in and the standards that you follow. Are PESO and OISD applicable to your industry? Please mention the nature of the industry you are in.

In OISD-156 for a marine terminal, it is to be conducted every month. According to PNGRB, "Testing and Mock Drills for onsite Emergency plan shall be carried out once every three months and for offsite emergency every twelve months." You also have the right to ask the Auditor on what basis he has recommended once every two months and which statutory requirement asks for that.

Therefore, it entirely depends on the type of industry you are in and what statutory standards are applicable.

Thanks & Regards,
Dilip - for this thread.
Neeraj

Dear Neeraj,

We are a food processing industry, an EOU with 450 employees. We possess ISO, BRC, HACCP quality certifications of international repute and are located in Haryana.

Hope it is clear now.

Dear,

Instead of looking into various rules/regulations, you can arrange mock drills on a monthly basis. A mock drill does not always have to be a big event. You can organize small drills in departments each month. There are many emergencies where evacuation may not be necessary. In such cases where the emergency is contained within a department, you can practice smaller drills and record them.

Many times, people panic in small emergencies because they cannot find the necessary items in time. Therefore, you can arrange a drill, have some observers present, and note the time required to bring the situation under control.

Thank you,
Sachin Thorat

Dear Neeraj,

Thanks for shedding more light on the thread. I always find something new to learn from your posts. Thanks for sharing your expertise with us.

Hi,

Yes, mock drills on fire are to be conducted once every two months. You must also contact the fire department and have a drill with them once every six months. Have an alternate month drill planned and coincide every six-month fire department drill with your fire drill date to make life easier.

Firefighting drill, evacuation drill, first aid training, and health checkups are the four features of the Factory Act that you must comply with.

Here is a tip:
1. An organization has to invest a lot for the above if conducted by external agencies - so - recruit someone with this set of qualifications and be happy.
2. A great deal of time and money is spent on safety engineering... safety trainings complement them. Investing time and money into mock drills is a useful investment. This will also enhance safety culture and employee morale.

Guess I have been of some help.

Yes, all the above answers are satisfactory, but I have to add one point regarding mock drills. As per the Factory Act 1948 and state rules, the frequency of mock drills should be once every six months, and fire drills should be conducted once every two months.

Regards, Bharat Patel

I would suggest you contact the factory inspector of your jurisdiction and get his view.

I would like to add here that even if the Factory Act specifies once in 6 months, and other applicable statutory requirements specify once in 2 months (e.g., Punjab or Haryana Factory Rules, etc.), then the stricter regulation should be followed.

ISO 45001:2018 (Previously OHSAS 18001)
ISO 45001:2018 states "periodically testing and exercising the planned response capability" as per clause 8.3 (c). However, this also does not specify a specific period.

In a nutshell, in this case, plan for once in 2 months, but also discuss with the factory inspector of your jurisdiction.