Rule 16: Composition of Safety Committee in mines
Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026
Rule 16 — Governs composition of safety committee in mines and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this rule. Key operative text: – (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.
Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026 were finally notified under G.S.R. 345(E), 8 May 2026. The Central Rules must be read with the Code and any later amendment/corrigendum.
Finin2min analysis — operative rule mechanics
Operative clauses
- – (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.
- (2) The representative of the employer on safety committee, in the mine shall be nominated by the employer and shall, as far as possible, be officials in direct touch with or associated with the workings of the mine, preferably the heads of major departments of the mine and will consists of;
- (a) the manager referred to in section 67 of the Code shall be the Chairman;
- (c) the Safety Officer, or where there is no safety officer, the senior most official next to the manager, who shall act as Secretary to the Committee;
- (3) The representative of the workers in the Safety Committee shall be chosen in the following manner, namely: - (a) where there is a sole negotiating union or a negotiating council or negotiating union, shall nominate the worker’s representatives on the Safety Committee and in the case of the negotiating council, the nomination shall be in the manner that every registered Trade Union representing in negotiating…
Provisos / explanations
- Provided that, the employer may, deploy an electronic process for choosing representative of workers:
Thresholds & timelines
- (c) the tenure of the members of the Safety Committee shall be three years.
Mapped Code sections
Full notified text — Rule 16
16. Composition of Safety Committee in mines. – (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal
number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.
(2) The representative of the employer on safety committee, in the mine shall be nominated by the employer
and shall, as far as possible, be officials in direct touch with or associated with the workings of the mine,
preferably the heads of major departments of the mine and will consists of;
(a) the manager referred to in section 67 of the Code shall be the Chairman;
(b) five officials or competent persons of the mine nominated by the Chairman;
(c) the Safety Officer, or where there is no safety officer, the senior most official next to the
manager, who shall act as Secretary to the Committee;
(3) The representative of the workers in the Safety Committee shall be chosen in the following
manner, namely: -
(a) where there is a sole negotiating union or a negotiating council or negotiating union, shall
nominate the worker’s representatives on the Safety Committee and in the case of the
negotiating council, the nomination shall be in the manner that every registered Trade Union
representing in negotiating council shall be represented in the Safety Committee in
proportion to the number of workers of the industrial establishment who are members of such
Trade Unions.
(b) where there is no sole negotiating union or negotiating union or negotiating council as
referred to the clause (a), the workers of the establishment shall choose amongst themselves:
Provided that, the employer may, deploy an electronic process for choosing representative of
workers:
Provided further that there shall be adequate representation of women workers on the Safety
Committee and such representation shall not be less than the proportion of women workers to the total
number of workers employed.
Provided also that in case there is no recognised negotiating union or negotiating council and
where any dispute arises regarding the choice of the representative to the Safety Committee, the matter
may be referred to the concerned Regional Labour Commissioner (Central), who shall after hearing
the parties decide the matter and the decision of Regional Labour Commissioner (Central) shall be
final.
Provided also that the workers representatives at least one each from mining, electrical and
mechanical discipline shall be nominated or elected as the case may be:
(c) the tenure of the members of the Safety Committee shall be three years.Application and evidence
- Primary statutory test — – (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.
- Additional operative limb — (2) The representative of the employer on safety committee, in the mine shall be nominated by the employer and shall, as far as possible, be officials in direct touch with or associated with the workings of the mine, preferably the heads of major departments of the mine and will consists of;
- Qualification / exception to test — Provided that, the employer may, deploy an electronic process for choosing representative of workers:
- Numerical or timing control — (c) the tenure of the members of the Safety Committee shall be three years.
- Code Section mapping — 22. Read the mapped provision together with this text rather than treating the concordance as a substitute for it.
- Evidence file — retain facts and records proving the role/status of: Employer, Worker, Trade union.
Cross-references & prescribed forms
Sections cited/mapped
Forms
No form is directly mapped in the current rule register.
Worked example
For an establishment affected by composition of safety committee in mines, the compliance owner should identify the applicable sector and authority, document the prescribed control/notice/record and retain inspection or training evidence. A text point to test is: “(c) the tenure of the members of the Safety Committee shall be three years.” Also test the express qualification/proviso before concluding the result. Reconcile the mapped Code Section(s) 22.
Illustrative only. Use the exact notified rule, prescribed form and competent authority.
Q&A — Rule 16
What is Rule 16 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026?
Rule 16 — Governs composition of safety committee in mines and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this rule. Key operative text: – (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.
What does Rule 16 require or permit?
A principal operative clause extracted from the notified rule is: “– (1) The Safety Committee shall consist of an equal number of members representing the employer and the workers, which shall not exceed twenty.” Read it with all sub-rules and provisos below.
Does Rule 16 contain a proviso or explanation?
Yes. One extracted qualification is: “Provided that, the employer may, deploy an electronic process for choosing representative of workers:”
What deadline, period, percentage or amount appears in Rule 16?
The rule contains this numerical/time expression: “(c) the tenure of the members of the Safety Committee shall be three years.” Apply it only in its notified context.
Which Code sections are linked to Rule 16?
The current concordance maps Rule 16 to Section(s) 22.
When did Rule 16 come into force?
The final Central Rules were notified as G.S.R. 345(E), 8 May 2026; Rule 1 states that the Rules come into force on publication. Check any later amendment or corrigendum before reliance.