Setting Up of Business, Industrial and Labour Laws · The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020

Inspector-cum-Facilitator and Enforcement under the OSH Code 2020

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Under the OSH Code, 2020, the appropriate Government appoints Inspector-cum-Facilitators (section 34) to inspect and guide establishments, through a notified, randomised, web-based inspection scheme. They must keep information secret (section 39). The National and State Advisory Boards (sections 16 and 17) only advise the Government.

Understand Inspector-cum-Facilitator, Enforcement, Offences and Penalties

The OSH Code replaces older inspector systems with a softer, two-role officer: the Inspector-cum-Facilitator. The officer inspects, but also helps establishments comply. Think of the role as enforcement plus guidance.

The appropriate Government appoints these officers by notification (section 34(1)). Each officer works within the jurisdiction named in the notification. Above them sits the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator, who can be appointed for a State, for more than one State, or for the whole country. Additional, Joint and Deputy Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitators can exercise the Chief's powers within their jurisdiction, and they also have the powers of an Inspector-cum-Facilitator.

Inspections are meant to be transparent and not arbitrary. The Government may notify an inspection scheme that allows web-based inspection and electronic calling of information. It may also provide for randomised selection of both the establishment and the officer. The scheme may use a unique number for each establishment (the same as its registration number under section 3), for each officer and for each inspection. It may also require timely uploading of inspection reports and provide for special inspections.

Two safeguards protect the system. First, a person who is directly or indirectly interested in a workplace, work activity, process, business, plant or machinery connected with it cannot be appointed, or continue in office (section 34(8)). Second, section 39 makes information gathered during inspection confidential, and protects the source of a complaint.

The Code also creates advisory bodies. The National Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board (section 16) advises the Central Government. The State Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board (section 17) advises the State Government. Both are advisory, not enforcement bodies. The text supplied to you does not cover the penalty, compounding and adjudication sections, so for those, learn the general scheme from your study material and do not quote section numbers you are unsure of.

Key rules to remember

Appointment of Inspector-cum-Facilitators: Appropriate Government → by notification → Inspector-cum-Facilitators with jurisdiction specified (s. 34(1)); Chief and Additional, Joint and Deputy Chiefs are also appointed by notification (s. 34(5)-(6)).
Disqualification for appointment: No appointment or continuance if directly or indirectly interested in a workplace, work activity, process, business, plant or machinery connected with it (s. 34(8)); The test is interest, whether direct or indirect.
Inspection scheme: Web-based inspection + electronic calling of information + randomised selection of establishment and officer (s. 34(3)); It is notified by the appropriate Government. Unique numbers and report uploading are factors it may consider under s. 34(4).
Status of officers: Deemed public servants; officially subordinate to the authority the appropriate Government specifies (s. 34(11)); The official text refers to section 21 of the Indian Penal Code; for other uses, remember the IPC is replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Secrecy rule: Information from inspection is confidential, during and after service, unless the officer considers disclosure necessary for the health, safety or welfare of a person employed (s. 39(1)); Exceptions in s. 39(2): any court; any Committee or Board under the Code; an official superior or the employer; the Commissioner for employees' compensation; the Controller, Indian Bureau of Mines; and other officers specified by the appropriate Government.
Complaint source: Source of a complaint cannot be disclosed without the complainant's consent, even under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (s. 39(3)); The officer must also not tell the employer that the inspection is due to a complaint.
National Board: Constituted by Central Government; Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment is Chairperson ex officio (s. 16); Members in clauses (g), (j), (k), (l) and (m) hold office for three years (s. 16(3)). Joint Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment is Member Secretary.
State Board: Constituted by State Government to advise on matters referred to it (s. 17); Constitution and procedure are as prescribed by the State Government.

How to solve Inspector-cum-Facilitator, Enforcement, Offences and Penalties questions

Use this method for any question on officers, boards or enforcement under the OSH Code.

1Identify what the question tests: appointment, powers, inspection method, secrecy, or advisory boards.
2Name the right authority. Is it the appropriate Government, the Central Government or the State Government?
3State the rule in plain words and cite the section only if you are sure (34, 39, 16, 17).
4Apply the rule to the facts. Look for traps such as an interested person, a complaint source or a disclosure to a court.
5For penalties, compounding or adjudication, give the general scheme from your study material and avoid unverified amounts or section numbers.
6Write a clear conclusion in one or two lines that answers the question asked.

Quickest way: Four-label sorting

When to use it: Use this for short-note and case-study questions when time is tight.

Label the question: Appoint, Inspect, Secrecy or Board.
Appoint: notification by the appropriate Government, then check the interest bar.
Inspect: scheme, randomised, web-based, unique numbers, report uploading.
Secrecy: confidential by default, then the exceptions list, then the complaint source rule.
Board: National advises the Centre, State advises the State; both are advisory only.

Common mistakes in Inspector-cum-Facilitator, Enforcement, Offences and Penalties

Saying the Government appoints 'Inspectors' only, and missing the facilitator role.
Students carry over older labour-law terms.
Fix: Use the full term Inspector-cum-Facilitator and mention that the officer both inspects and guides.
Treating the Advisory Boards as enforcement bodies.
The word 'Board' suggests decision-making power.
Fix: State that the National Board advises the Central Government and the State Board advises the State Government.
Saying officers can disclose information freely to anyone.
Students forget that section 39 treats information as confidential.
Fix: State the confidentiality rule first, then the exceptions such as courts, Boards under the Code, superiors and the employer.
Revealing, in an answer, that the employer can be told a complaint triggered the inspection.
Students think of fairness to the employer.
Fix: Remember that section 39(3) bars disclosure of the complaint source and of the fact that the inspection is complaint-based.
Quoting penalty amounts or compounding section numbers from memory.
Students try to show detail without checking the text.
Fix: State the scheme in words and cite figures only if you are certain of them.

Worked examples

Example 1

Mr. Rao is a shareholder-director of Sunrise Textiles Ltd, a factory in Gujarat. The State Government proposes to appoint him as an Inspector-cum-Facilitator for the district where the factory is located. Advise whether the appointment is valid.

Show the solution

Provision: under section 34(1), the appropriate Government appoints Inspector-cum-Facilitators by notification.
Section 34(8) bars appointment, or continuing in office, of a person who is directly or indirectly interested in a workplace, work activity, process or business carried on in any workplace, or in any plant or machinery connected with it.
Facts: Mr. Rao holds an interest in the factory business, so he is interested in a workplace and its business.
The bar applies at the time of appointment and also later if he becomes interested.

Answer: The appointment is not valid. Section 34(8) prohibits appointing a person who is directly or indirectly interested in a workplace or its business. If he were appointed and later became interested, he would have to cease to hold office.

Example 2

An Inspector-cum-Facilitator inspects Bharat Steels Pvt Ltd after a worker complains about unsafe machinery. The employer asks who complained and whether the inspection is because of a complaint. Can the officer tell him? Also, may the officer share the inspection records with a court?

Show the solution

Provision: section 39(3) says the officer shall not disclose the source of a complaint without the complainant's consent, even notwithstanding the Right to Information Act, 2005.
The officer also must not tell the employer or his representative that the inspection is being made because of a complaint.
Section 39(1) makes information from inspection confidential, so disclosure to the employer of the complaint source is not allowed.
Section 39(2)(a) says the confidentiality rule does not apply to disclosure to any court.

Answer: The officer cannot reveal the complainant or that the inspection follows a complaint, unless the complainant consents. The officer may disclose the inspection information to a court, because section 39(2)(a) excludes courts from the secrecy rule.

Exam tips

Learn section 34 in groups: appointment, inspection scheme, Chief and Deputy Chiefs, interest bar, public servant status.
For secrecy questions, write the rule, then the exceptions, then the complaint source rule, in that order.
For board questions, say who constitutes it, who it advises and that it is advisory only.
Do not invent penalty figures. Describe the scheme in words and cite sections only when certain.
Use the exact term Inspector-cum-Facilitator throughout your answer.

Practice questions from The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020

Inspector-cum-Facilitator, Enforcement, Offences and Penalties in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Inspector-cum-Facilitator, Enforcement, Offences and Penalties: frequently asked questions

Who appoints Inspector-cum-Facilitators under the OSH Code?

The appropriate Government appoints them by notification under section 34(1). The notification specifies the jurisdiction in which each officer exercises powers.

What is the randomised inspection scheme?

Under section 34(3), the appropriate Government may notify a scheme with web-based inspection and electronic calling of information. It can also provide for randomised selection of both the establishment and the officer.

Can an Inspector-cum-Facilitator disclose the source of a complaint?

No, not without the complainant's consent. Section 39(3) applies even despite the Right to Information Act, 2005, and the officer also cannot tell the employer that an inspection is complaint-based.

What does the National Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board do?

Under section 16, it advises the Central Government on standards, rules and regulations, implementation of the Code, policy and programme issues, and other matters referred to it. The Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment is its Chairperson ex officio.