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Code on Social Security, 2020 · 4

Section 48: Constitution of Employees’ Insurance Court

Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026

Section 48 — Governs constitution of employees’ insurance court and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this section. Key operative text: (1) The State Government shall, by notification, constitute an Employees' Insurance Court for such local area as may be specified in the notification.

Full official textSource checked: 20 August 20262 direct Central Rule link(s)

Current-law status

The Code was commenced in stages: section 142 had earlier commencement, S.O. 5319(E) brought the specified provisions into force from 21 November 2025, and later commencement instruments must be read with the current India Code footnotes for the remaining clauses.

Primary sources

Provision / India Code ↗ · Official Act PDF ↗ · 2026 Central Rules ↗

Finin2min analysis — what the section actually does

Operative clauses

(1) The State Government shall, by notification, constitute an Employees' Insurance Court for such local area as may be specified in the notification.
(2) The Employees’ Insurance Court shall consist of such number of Judges as the State Government may think fit.
(3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.
(4) The State Government may appoint the same Court for two or more local areas or two or more Employees’ Insurance Courts for the same local area.
(5) Where more than one Employees’ Insurance Court has been appointed for the same local area, the State Government may by general or special order regulate the distribution of business between them.

Provisos, explanations & qualifications

No proviso/explanation was separately extracted from this section text.

Thresholds and timelines in the text

(3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.

Actors expressly appearing in the text

Employee / worker, State Government

Full statutory text — Section 48

Official English text transcribed from the current India Code consolidation; page headers/line breaks are normalised for web reading. The Gazette/India Code PDF remains authoritative for typography, amendment footnotes and schedules.

48. Constitution of Employees’ Insurance Court.—(1) The State Government shall, by notification,
constitute an Employees' Insurance Court for such local area as may be specified in the notification.
   (2) The Employees’ Insurance Court shall consist of such number of Judges as the State Government
may think fit.
    (3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall
be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.
  (4) The State Government may appoint the same Court for two or more local areas or two or more
Employees’ Insurance Courts for the same local area.
    (5) Where more than one Employees’ Insurance Court has been appointed for the same local area, the
State Government may by general or special order regulate the distribution of business between them.

How to apply this provision

Primary statutory test — (1) The State Government shall, by notification, constitute an Employees' Insurance Court for such local area as may be specified in the notification.
Additional operative limb — (2) The Employees’ Insurance Court shall consist of such number of Judges as the State Government may think fit.
Numerical or timing control — (3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.
Central Rule mapping — 24, 29. 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: Employee / worker, State Government.

Why this is section-specific: the operative-clause, exception, threshold and cross-reference panels above are extracted from Section 48 itself rather than a generic “trigger/control/evidence” template.

Rules, forms and cross-references

Direct 2026 Central Rule mapping

Rule 24 Rule 29

Forms mapped

No prescribed form is directly mapped in the current concordance.

Other sections cited in this text

None expressly mapped in the current concordance.

Related Labour Hub resources

EPFO Schemes ESIC Gratuity hub

A direct concordance is not exhaustive. Central/State jurisdiction, schemes, authority appointments, saved instruments and later notifications may change the practical route without changing the section wording.

Worked example

For a worker/member seeking a benefit connected with constitution of employees’ insurance court, the file should show coverage, service/contribution facts, the rule/scheme and prescribed form, and the calculation/payment. One statutory point to test is: “(3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.” Read the mapped Central Rule(s) 24, 29.

Illustration only; it is not statutory text or a substitute for applying the actual facts, jurisdiction, current rule/scheme and official instrument.

Q&A — Section 48

What does Section 48 of the Social Security Code cover?

What is the main legal requirement or power in Section 48?

The first operative clause identified from the official text is: “(1) The State Government shall, by notification, constitute an Employees' Insurance Court for such local area as may be specified in the notification.” Read it with the remaining subsections and any proviso below.

Does Section 48 contain a proviso or explanation?

No standalone proviso or explanation was extracted from this section text. Check the full text below for clause-level qualifications.

What time limit, percentage or amount appears in Section 48?

The provision contains this numerical/time expression: “(3) Any person who is or has been a judicial officer or is a legal practitioner of five years' standing shall be qualified to be a Judge of the Employees' Insurance Court.” Apply it only in the clause and context in which it appears.

Which 2026 Central Rules are linked to Section 48?

The current concordance maps Section 48 to Central Rule(s) 24, 29.

Is Section 48 currently operative?

Source & verification trail

Act: Code on Social Security, 2020 — official India Code PDF ↗

Central Rules: Social Security (Central) Rules, 2026 — G.S.R. 344(E), 8 May 2026 ↗

Official library: Ministry of Labour & Employment — Labour Codes ↗

Source check: 20 August 2026. Individual professional interpretation should be re-reviewed when the section, rules, notification, scheme, State overlay or controlling judgment changes.

Reliance note: This page is an educational legal-reference layer. Verify the current official text, the applicable Central/State rules, notifications, schemes and judicial decisions before acting on a live matter.