Ladakh explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
The Ladakh Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Rules, 2026 are the Administration's rules under sections 133 and 135 of the OSH Code, 2020. For an employer in Ladakh they fix the registration fee schedule, the accident and disease notices, who needs a Safety Committee or Safety Officer, the overtime and holiday conditions, the registers and annual return, and the conditions for women working early or late.
Registration is by Form 04 through the portal, with a fee that rises with the number of employees (1000 for up to 20 employees, 50000 above 5000, as printed in the Schedule to rule 6), and a late fee of twenty five percent. A fatal accident must be notified within twelve hours and confirmed in Form 10 within twenty-four hours. Overtime is paid at twice the ordinary rate of wages, and the annual return in Form 21 is due on the portal not later than 28th February following each calendar year.
The rule set and its commencement
This article explains the Ladakh Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Rules, 2026, as notified by S.O. 238 dated 30 July 2026 (Gazette Extraordinary of 2 September 2026). Later amendments and State notifications under these rules should be checked in the State Gazette.
Rule 1(c) reads: "They shall come into force on and with effect from the date on which Code shall be enforced by Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette." The four Labour Codes were brought into force from 21 November 2025; see our post on sections 135 and 136 of the OSH Code. The rules extend to the whole of Ladakh.
The rules supersede the Jammu and Kashmir Building and Other Construction Workers rules of 2006, the Jammu and Kashmir Factories Rules, 1972, the Contract Labour rules of 1972, the Inter-State Migrant Workmen rules of 1984 and the Motor Transport Workers Rules, 1972, "except in respect of things done or omitted to be done before such supersession". For the Central position see rules 1 and 2 of the OSH Central Rules. A compliance review of your establishment under these rules can be arranged through our labour law compliance service.
Rule 2 defines "Portal" as the Labour Department's website for services under the Code, and "electronically" as submission by email or upload on the portal or digital payment. Rule 4 lets the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator recognise "competent persons" for building plans and tests of machinery, with an application fee of rupees twenty five thousand and a refundable security of rupees one lakh, paid on the portal; this concerns those seeking recognition, not employers generally.
Registration of establishments (rules 6 to 11)
| Obligation | Rule | Form | Time or fee as printed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application to the Registering Officer through the portal, digitally signed | 6(1) | 04 | with fee per the Schedule |
| Information on inter-state migrant workers | 6(4) | 05 | with the application |
| Update of registration under a Central law | 6(3) | portal | within six months from the date the rules come into force |
| Increase in employees after registration | 6(6) | - | differential amount payable |
| Register of registered establishments | 7(2) | 06 | kept by the Registering Officer |
| Late fee | 9 | - | twenty five percent of the fee under the Schedule |
| Notice of commencement | 11 | 07 | before the period of fifteen days of commencement, on the portal |
| Notice of cessation | 11 | 08 | within thirty days of cessation, on the portal |
Registration fee Schedule (rule 6(5)), by number of employees to be employed, as printed:
| Employees | Fee | Employees | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 20 | 1000 | 751-1000 | 17500 |
| 21-50 | 2000 | 1001-1500 | 20000 |
| 51-100 | 3000 | 1501-2000 | 25000 |
| 101-150 | 5000 | 2001-3000 | 30000 |
| 151-200 | 7500 | 3001-5000 | 40000 |
| 201-250 | 10000 | Above 5000 | 50000 |
| 251-500 | 12500 | ||
| 501-750 | 15000 |
Rule 7 says the certificate is issued electronically in the form and within the time prescribed by the Central Government, and if the Registering Officer does not issue it in that period on a complete application, the establishment is deemed registered immediately after that period. Fees are paid through the portal (rule 10). Central posts: rule 3 on application for registration and rule 4 on notice of commencement and cessation.
Employer duties: medical examination, accidents and reports (rules 12 to 17)
- Medical examination (rule 12). Every employer of a factory, beedi or cigar work and building or construction work arranges, without charge to employees, an annual medical examination of all employees above forty-five years of age within one hundred and twenty days from the beginning of the year. Employees handling a hazardous substance or process or dangerous operations are examined twice a year within thirty days from 1 January and 1 July, whatever their age. Records are kept in Form 09.
- Appointment letter. Every employer issues an appointment letter in the format printed in the rule, including registration number, designation, skill category and wages. See rule 6 of the Central rules.
- Fatal accident (rule 13). Inform the Registering Officer or Designated Authority and the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator "within twelve hours", and also the District or Sub-Divisional Magistrate, the police station, the family and, for an inter-state migrant worker, the authorities of the concerned state; confirm by Form 10 within twenty-four hours. For an injury preventing work for forty-eight hours or more, report in Form 10 within twenty-four hours after the forty-eight hours expire.
- Dangerous occurrence (rule 14). Notice in Form 11 within twelve hours by telephone, special messenger or email to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator, the police station and the Registering Officer; the rule's Schedule lists the occurrences.
- Disease (rule 15). Notice in Form 12; the medical practitioner reports within forty eight hours.
- Employee reports and action taken (rules 16 and 17). An employee reports an unsafe situation in Form 13; a report of action taken on imminent danger goes to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator in Form 14 within twenty-four hours of remedial action. See rule 7 of the Central rules.
Safety Board, Safety Committee and Safety Officer (rules 18 to 32)
Rules 18 to 30 constitute the Ladakh Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board (Secretary Labour as Chairperson, with three employer, three employee and three expert members for three-year terms; quorum of ten members) and require every employer to submit occupational safety and health statistics to the Administration and the Labour Bureau electronically on the portal. Every inter-State migrant worker employed or self-employed in the Union territory is to register on the portal (rule 30(2)).
Safety Committee (rule 31). Required in an establishment (a) where two hundred and fifty or more employees are ordinarily employed, (b) which handles a hazardous substance and employs fifty or more employees, or (c) which carries on a hazardous process or a dangerous operation and employs fifty or more. The Chairman is a senior official; the employees' representatives are elected; the tenure is two years; it meets at least once every quarter. Establishments other than audio-visual production, building or construction work, factory or plantation may set up a committee of equal employer and worker representatives approved by the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator. See rule 14 of the Central rules.
Safety Officer (rule 32). One Safety Officer is required for factories employing between five hundred and one thousand workers, with an additional officer for every five hundred workers or a fraction; for hazardous-process factories or building and construction establishments employing between two hundred fifty and five hundred workers, with an additional one for every two hundred fifty. The occupier informs the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator and the area Inspector-cum-Facilitator within seven days of the appointment. Qualifications are listed in the rule.
Hours, holidays and overtime (rules 33 to 38)
| Subject | Rule | As printed |
|---|---|---|
| Work on the weekly holiday | 33 | Only with a whole-day holiday on one of the three days before or after, a notice delivered at the Inspector-cum-Facilitator's office and a notice displayed; never more than ten days consecutively without a whole-day holiday |
| Compensatory holidays | 34 | Within the month in which due or the two months following; not more than two holidays in a week; notice by the end of the month; Form 16 entries |
| Overtime wages | 35(1) | For work beyond eight hours a day or forty-eight hours a week, twice the ordinary rate of wages, paid at the end of each wage period |
| Rounding | 35(2) | Fraction between thirty and forty-five minutes counted as forty-five minutes; more than that counted as an hour |
| Daily wage of monthly worker | 35(3) | 1/26th of monthly wages |
| Spread-over above twelve hours | 35(4) | Allowed in listed circumstances in establishments other than factories, e.g. urgent repairs, intermittent work, exceptional press of work |
| Overtime limits | 36 | Work not above twelve hours a day; spread-over not above thirteen hours; total hours including overtime not above seventy two; overtime not for more than seven days at a stretch; not above one hundred and fifty hours in a quarter |
| Double employment | 37 | Only with previous approval of the Inspector-cum-Facilitator, not above eight hours in all in a day, card with entries by both occupiers |
| Notice of periods of work | 38 | Displayed in Form 15; copy sent to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator; a change needs prior electronic notice and, within a week of the last change, previous sanction |
The Central posts are rule 64 on working hours, rules 67 and 68 on weekly and compensatory holidays and rule 69 on overtime.
Registers, records and returns (rules 39 to 50)
The register of adult workers and the register of wages follow the form under the Ladakh Code on Wages rules, and the register of adolescent workers the form under the relevant law as printed in rules 39, 40 and 45; the wage slip is on or before payment of wages (rule 49). Other items:
- Muster-roll, Form 16 (rule 41): name, nature of work and daily attendance; attendance marked within one hour of the start of duty in an establishment employing more than hundred workers and within half an hour in others; preserved three years after the last entry. An attendance card in Form 17 is supplied, with a replacement on payment of twenty-five rupees; a biometric system meeting the listed conditions replaces the card.
- Register of accidents and dangerous occurrences, Form 18 (rule 42).
- Register of leave with wages, Form 19 (rule 43): preserved three years after the last entry.
- Overtime slips in duplicate, signed by the employer, given immediately after the overtime work (rule 44).
- Notices of authorities in Form 20 (rule 46), registration certificates and licences (rule 47), and a name board in which two third of the upper area is in English (rule 48).
- Annual return, Form 21 on the portal not later than 28th February following the end of each calendar year, with a copy to the Director General, Labour Bureau (rule 50). See rules 72, 73 and 74 of the Central rules (notice board and return; accident and leave registers).
Inspector-cum-Facilitator (rules 51 to 59)
Rule 51 prescribes the qualifications of the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator. Rule 53 lays down sampling: a notice in Form 22, samples in two sealed parts, the laboratory's report in Form 23 within seven days of completing analysis, and the cost of sampling and analysis borne by the employer. Rule 54 lists the powers to inspect, photograph, test, prosecute and issue orders. Rule 56 requires alternative employment on imminent danger without reduction of wages. Rule 58 lists dangerous occupations for medical examination, including sewerage treatment, marble cutting, working at height and crane operation. Rule 59 provides the adolescent fitness certificate in Form 24, valid for twelve months, with a fee of rupees one thousand paid by the employer and not recoverable from the adolescent or parents. See rule 78 of the Central rules.
Employment of women (rule 60)
Women may be employed before 6:00 AM and beyond 7:00 PM with consent, subject to conditions: no employment against the maternity benefit provisions; adequate transportation for pick-up and drop; a well-lit workplace and passages, with toilets, washrooms and drinking facilities near the workplace; safe, secure and healthy working conditions; not less than 3 women on duty in a below-ground mine; and compliance with the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013. See rules 83 and 84 of the Central rules.
Example. Lamayuru Foods, an invented packaging unit near Leh with 300 employees, must have a Safety Committee because it ordinarily employs two hundred and fifty or more. If a worker is fatally injured, the unit informs the Registering Officer and the Chief Inspector-cum-Facilitator within twelve hours, tells the police and the family, and files Form 10 within twenty-four hours.
Common lapses
- Reporting a fatal accident after the twelve-hour mark.
- Paying overtime at the ordinary rate instead of twice the ordinary rate.
- Missing the 28 February Form 21 date.
- Changing shift notices without the prior electronic notice to the Inspector-cum-Facilitator.
- Letting women work late without transport and lighting arrangements.
Need help with OSH registration and registers?
If you are registering an establishment in Ladakh or setting up the safety committee, notices and registers, our labour law compliance service can walk through each form with your team.
Key takeaways
- Registration fee depends on the number of employees; late fee is twenty five percent.
- Fatal accident: twelve hours to inform; Form 10 within twenty-four hours.
- Safety Committee at two hundred and fifty employees, or fifty with hazards.
- Overtime at twice the ordinary rate; quarterly cap of one hundred and fifty hours.
- Form 21 annual return not later than 28 February.
Read next
- Ladakh OSH Rules, 2026: contract labour, migrant workers, factories, plantations and offences
- Code on Wages (Ladakh) Rules, 2026: notification, minimum wages and hours
- Code on Social Security (Ladakh) Rules, 2026: gratuity, maternity benefit and compensation
Disclaimer: Based on the State or Union territory rules named above, as notified under the Labour Codes and consulted on 4 October 2026. Later amendments, State notifications, fees and forms should be checked in the State Gazette and on the State labour department website. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.