Regulatory Compliance
Process Safety Regulations in India: Factories Act, MSIHC Rules, PESO, OISD and PNGRB
Vinit Pandey · Published 15 October 2026
In short: India has no single process safety law. Hazardous process plants are governed by the Factories Act provisions on hazardous processes (now consolidated into the OSH Code), the MSIHC Rules 1989 and Chemical Accidents Rules 1996 for major accident hazard sites, PESO licensing for petroleum, gases and explosives, OISD standards for the oil and gas sector, PNGRB's ERDMP regulations, and EIA risk assessment requirements.
Key takeaways
- There is no single Indian PSM statute — obligations are spread across several acts and rules
- The MSIHC Rules 1989 define Major Accident Hazard installations by chemical threshold quantities
- MAH sites need safety reports, safety audits and on-site emergency plans; districts prepare off-site plans
- PESO, OISD and PNGRB add sector-specific licensing, design standards and emergency planning requirements
Unlike the US, where OSHA's Process Safety Management standard sets one set of elements for covered processes, India's process safety obligations are spread across several laws administered by different authorities. Most of the framework was put in place after the 1984 Bhopal disaster, and it is organised around the idea of the Major Accident Hazard (MAH) installation — a site holding hazardous chemicals above specified threshold quantities.
This guide is an orientation summary, not legal advice. Rules are amended and states issue their own rules under central acts, so always confirm the current text that applies to your site.
Factories Act 1948 and the OSH Code
Chapter IVA of the Factories Act (Sections 41A to 41H), added in 1987, deals specifically with hazardous processes listed in the Act's First Schedule. It requires occupiers to disclose information on hazards, prepare on-site emergency plans and detailed disaster control measures (Section 41B), arrange medical surveillance, comply with permissible exposure limits, and set up safety committees with worker participation. It also gives workers the right to warn of imminent danger.
The Factories Act has been consolidated, with other labour laws, into the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020. The hazardous-process obligations carry forward, with central and state rules filling in the detail — check which rules apply to your state.
MSIHC Rules 1989 — Major Accident Hazard installations
The Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, made under the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, are the closest Indian equivalent to a major-hazard regime. Their schedules list hazardous chemicals and threshold quantities; a site holding a listed chemical above the threshold is an MAH installation.
Occupiers of MAH installations must notify the authorities, identify major accident hazards and take adequate steps to prevent them, prepare and update a safety report, carry out safety audits, prepare an on-site emergency plan, and provide information to people likely to be affected. The district authority prepares the off-site emergency plan using information supplied by the occupier.
Chemical Accidents (EPPR) Rules 1996
The Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules complement MSIHC by setting up crisis groups at central, state, district and local levels to plan for and respond to chemical accidents. For an MAH site this is the structure its off-site plan and mutual aid arrangements plug into.
PESO — petroleum, compressed gases and explosives
The Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation licenses the storage and handling of petroleum products, compressed and liquefied gases, and explosives under rules including the Petroleum Rules 2002, the Static and Mobile Pressure Vessels (Unfired) Rules 2016, the Gas Cylinders Rules 2016 and the Explosives Rules 2008. Licensing typically involves layout approval, safety distances and statutory inspection, and hazard studies are frequently requested as part of approval for larger installations.
OISD standards — oil and gas
The Oil Industry Safety Directorate, under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, issues standards and guidelines for refineries, gas processing plants, pipelines, terminals and depots. Widely referenced examples include OISD-STD-105 on work permit systems, OISD-STD-116 on fire protection for refineries, gas processing and petrochemical plants, OISD-STD-117 on fire protection for depots and terminals, and OISD-STD-118 on layouts for oil and gas installations. OISD also conducts safety audits of the sector.
PNGRB — Emergency Response and Disaster Management Plans
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board's ERDMP Regulations, 2010 require entities in the petroleum and natural gas sector — refineries, storage terminals, pipelines and city gas distribution networks among them — to prepare and maintain an Emergency Response and Disaster Management Plan. A credible ERDMP rests on consequence modelling of the worst-case and credible scenarios, which sets emergency zones and response resources.
EIA, NDMA guidelines and Indian standards
Projects requiring environmental clearance under the EIA Notification 2006 are typically asked, through their terms of reference, for a risk assessment and disaster management plan — often a QRA or consequence study. The National Disaster Management Authority's Guidelines on Chemical Disasters (Industrial), 2007 set national expectations for prevention and preparedness. IS 15656:2006 (Hazard Identification and Risk Analysis — Code of Practice) from the Bureau of Indian Standards describes the hazard identification and risk analysis techniques commonly expected in Indian safety reports.
Which studies these requirements typically drive
In practice, Indian requirements translate into a recurring set of studies:
- ●HAZOP and HAZID — hazard identification for safety reports, PESO approvals and insurer requirements
- ●Consequence modelling — on-site and off-site emergency plans, ERDMP zones, siting and safety distances
- ●QRA — EIA risk assessment, land-use and siting decisions, safety reports for larger MAH sites
- ●Safety audits — MSIHC MAH audits, OISD audits, and internal PSM compliance audits
- ●SIL and LOPA — where safety instrumented systems are designed to IEC 61511, often at the request of licensors or insurers
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a process safety management law in India?
There is no single Indian equivalent of OSHA's PSM standard. Process safety obligations come from the Factories Act provisions on hazardous processes (now within the OSH Code), the MSIHC Rules 1989, the Chemical Accidents Rules 1996, PESO rules, OISD standards and PNGRB regulations.
What is an MAH installation in India?
A Major Accident Hazard (MAH) installation is a site that handles or stores a hazardous chemical listed in the MSIHC Rules 1989 in a quantity at or above the threshold specified in the rules' schedules. MAH occupiers must prepare safety reports, carry out safety audits and maintain an on-site emergency plan.
Is HAZOP mandatory in India?
HAZOP is not named as mandatory in a single statute, but hazard identification and risk analysis are required for MAH safety reports and are routinely expected by PESO, OISD, insurers and licensors — and HAZOP is the most widely accepted method for meeting that expectation.
Who needs an ERDMP?
Under PNGRB's ERDMP Regulations 2010, entities in the petroleum and natural gas sector — including refineries, storage terminals, pipelines and city gas distribution networks — must prepare and maintain an Emergency Response and Disaster Management Plan.