(a) whether the Government has any report of accidents and casualty in the steel plants of the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor, plant-wise;
(c) the action taken and the compensation paid to the families by the companies therefor; and
(d) the corrective steps taken by the Government to prevent recurrence of such accidents?
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR STEEL (SHRI VISHNU DEO SAI)
(a)&(b): A statement showing details of accidents which occurred in different public sector steel plants of the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) during the last three years and the current year is annexed. The accidents at these plants have occurred due to reasons such as fall from height, gas poisoning, electrocution, burn injury, fire/explosion etc.
Steel is a deregulated sector. There are a large number of steel factories/plants in the country. Therefore in regard to the private steel sector, the requisite data/information is not maintained by the Ministry of Steel.
(c) In case of fatal accidents of regular employees, the compensation is given as per the law/company policy. SAIL and RINL provide compensation to their employees in case of death/disablement due to accident arising out of and in course of employment as per The Employees’ Compensation Act, Employee Family Benefit Scheme and company policy. In case of contract labour, compensation/dependent benefit is paid under the Employee State Insurance Scheme (ESIS) by the ESI Corporation. SAIL and RINL have paid approximately Rs.6,47,39,146/- as compensation to the injured persons and families of deceased during 2014-2017.
(d) Both SAIL and RINL have taken a number of measures to avoid occurrence of accidents. These measures, inter-alia, include adherence to maintenance schedule, thrust on systematic approach to safety management, strict adherence to safety procedures, regular inspection, mandatory training and special training on safety awareness, conduct of safety audit, enforcing use of personal protection equipment and proper implementation of emergency plan prepared as per the provisions of the Factories Act, 1948 etc.
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