Section 46 of Mines Act : Section 46: Employment Of Women

Bare Act

46 Employment of women - (1) No woman shall, notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, be employed

• (a) in any part of a mine which is below ground;
• (b) in any mine above ground except between the hours of 6 A.M. and 7 P.M.

(2) Every woman employed in a mine above ground shall be allowed an interval of not less than eleven hours between the termination of employment on any one day and the commencement of the next period of employment.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, vary the hours of employment above ground of women in respect of any mine or class or description of mine, so however that no employment of any woman between the hours of 10 P.M. and 5 A.M. is permitted thereby.

Simplified Act

Rules for Women Working in Mines:

(1) Women cannot work:

• (a) Underground in mines at all.
• (b) In mines above ground outside the time between 6 in the morning and 7 in the evening.

(2) Women working above ground must have a break of at least 11 hours before...

Explanation using Example

Imagine a scenario where Priya works as an engineer for a mining company. According to Section 46 of The Mines Act, 1952:

• Priya cannot be assigned to work underground in the mine at any time, due to the prohibition on women working below ground.
• She can work at the surface installations of the mine, but her shift must be scheduled between 6 A.M. and 7 P.M., ensuring she does not work during late-night hours.
• If Priya finishes her shift at 7 P.M. on a Tuesday, she cannot be scheduled to start her next shift until at least ...