Loopholes in OHS rule blamed for poor safety measures (http://www.kuenselonline.com/loopholes-in-ohs-rule-blamed-for-poor-safety-measures/)

The DG pointed out that even large contractors do not have safety committees, safety guidelines and safety officers because details were missing in how to implement the regulation. “There were no penalties for the defaulters because it isn’t clearly stated in the law.”

Awareness of OHS in the construction industry was limited, which according to DG Tenzin was mainly because the focus was always on construction quality, the progress of the work and the cost. “The safety culture is not picking up because there are no effective construction safety guidelines.”

Best practices

There are only a handful of companies that follow safety rules. The Construction Development Corporation Limited is one. The Vajra Builder, who was invited to share their experience at the seminar, is one of the few in the private sector.

Sharing an experience, Vajra Builder’s project engineer, Sherab Chojay said a national worker, who was working on top of a five-storied building in Paro, slipped and fell off the building. However, nothing happened as he was wearing a safety harness, he said.