After the couple of malfunction incidents at factories which started after over a month of lockdown at Vishakhapatnam and Chhattisgarh, the Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday has released guidelines for the restarting of factories after the lockdown period.

“Due to several weeks of lockdown and the closure of industrial units during the lockdown period, it is possible that some of the operators might not have followed the established SOP. As a result, some of the manufacturing facilities, pipelines, valves, etc. may have residual chemicals, which may pose risk. The same is true for the storage facilities with hazardous chemicals and flammable materials,” the Ministry said.

“When Lockout/Tagout procedures are not in place, many energy sources can prove to be hazardous to operators/supervisors who are servicing or maintaining electrical, mechanical or chemical equipment. When heavy machinery and equipment are not maintained periodically, they can become dangerous for the operators/engineers,” it said.

Ministry further added, “Combustible liquids, contained gaseous substances, open wires, conveyor belts and automated vehicles make manufacturing facilities a high-risk environment. Improper enforcement of safety codes and improperly labelled chemicals can further pose serious health hazards.”

The generic guidelines which the Ministry issued are, “While restarting the unit, consider the first week as the trial or test run period; ensure all safety protocols; and not try to achieve high production targets.

“To minimize the risk it is important that employees who work on specific equipment are sensitized and made aware of the need to identify abnormalities like strange sounds or smell, exposed wires, vibrations, leaks, smoke, abnormal wobbling, irregular grinding or other potentially hazardous signs which indicate the need for immediate maintenance or if required shutdown,” it said.

“Especially during the Covid-19 times, ensure all lockout and tag-out procedures are in place on a daily basis (not applicable for units running 24hrs).”

“Inspection of all equipment as per the safety protocols during the restart phase.”

“In case the industry has any difficulty in managing crucial backward linkages that may be critical for their safe functioning, they should approach the local district administration for specific assistance. District Magistrates may be instructed to ensure that in such instances, the industrial unit may be facilitated to run their end to end operations, in the overall interests of industrial security,” it added.

MHA also asked the state governments to ensure that the off-site disaster management plan of the respective Major Accidental Hazard (MAH) units are up to date and preparedness to implement them is high.