Maharashtra mandates 12–4 pm break for outdoor workers during summer in new SOP

Maharashtra counts among the 10 most heat-vulnerable states in country. The state govt is also setting up a training and research centre on disaster management

The Maharashtra government on Monday issued a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for outdoor informal workers in urban areas during summer, delineating a string of measures to protect such workers from extreme heat and related health complications. The SOP, which mandates rescheduling of working hours and a compulsory break from 12 noon till 4pm during orange and red alerts about heat, will apply to all municipal corporations, municipal councils and nagar panchayats in high-risk urban areas across the state including Mumbai, state disaster management minister Girish Mahajan said while releasing the guidelines.

A passenger drinking water is silhouetted against the sun on a hot summer day at Jalandhar Cantonment railway station in Jalandhar. (Representational Photo by Shammi MEHRA / AFP)

“Maharashtra has several districts with extreme heat conditions during summer. It affects human health and also causes deaths. To protect the people from extreme heat conditions, we have issued SOP,” Mahajan said.

The state government is also setting up a training and research centre on disaster management, including extreme heat conditions and sustainable cooling strategies, at Nagpur at a cost of ₹184 crore, the minister told reporters.

Maharashtra counts among the 10 most heat-vulnerable states in the country, and its Heat Action Plan identifies 15 districts in the Vidarbha, Marathwada and Khandesh regions as highly vulnerable to extreme heat. These districts are Latur, Amravati, Yavatmal, Washim, Akola, Buldhana, Nagpur, Wardha, Chandrapur, Gondia, Bhandara, Jalgaon, Nandurbar, Dhule and Nanded.

The SOP issued on Monday will be applicable to these 15 districts as well as other parts of the state including Mumbai when heat-wave like conditions prevail, officials clarified. The administration of concerned areas will be expected to enforce the guidelines, particularly in construction, industries and street vending where workers are exposed to extreme heat, they said.

The SOP document notes: “The advisory focuses on outdoor informal workers engaged in heat-exposed occupations, particularly street vendors, construction and daily wage labourers, traffic police, sanitation workers, gig and delivery workers, rickshaw pullers, porters…Others at risk include waste pickers, security guards, porters, pushcart pullers, anganwadi and ASHA workers.”

According to the SOP document, during orange and red heat alerts, outdoor working hours must be rescheduled to cooler periods – such as 6am to 11am and 4pm to 8pm, and workers must be given a rest break from 12 noon till 4pm.

To prevent dehydration, water booths must be installed at key informal work locations such as markets, crossings, traffic junctions, transit hubs and street vending zones; and Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) and electrolyte sachets must be distributed through primary health centres, ward offices and non-governmental organisations. Temporary shade structures must be installed at vending areas, labour chowks and busy traffic junctions, and urban bodies must keep parks and gardens open during afternoon hours so that people can access cooler spaces, the SOP says. The guidelines also emphasise workplace safety for women, mandating adequate lighting, transport arrangements and protective measures.

The SOP document said the government planned to upgrade dense work zones with permanent shade structures, cool roofs and improved access to drinking water; and encouraged employers and market associations to invest in cooling infrastructure.