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TMI Blog1991 (8) TMI 348X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Deputy Chief Inspector, Factories and Boilers, inspected the establishment of the petitioner-firm and found that it was not registered under the Factories Act and was being run without a licence. Consequently, a complaint was filed against the petitioner in the court of Judicial Magistrate No. 7, Jaipur-city Jaipur. The learned Magistrate found that the establishment of the petitioner was functioning without registration and obtaining a licence under Section 6 of the Act. Hence, the petitioner was convicted and sentenced under Section 92 of the Act read with Section 6 as indicated above. The trial Magistrate also gave direction to the petitioner to get his commercial establishment registered under the Factories Act within a period of three months. The revision preferred by the petitioner was also dismissed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Jaipur-city, Jaipur. 3. Normally, after the rejection of the revision petition under Section 397, Cr. P.C. confirming the conviction and sentence of the trial court, this Court does' not entertain a petition under Section 482, Cr. P.C. But, an important question of vital importance with regard to interpretation of Section 2(k) of the Act i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... k) of the Act as under:-- "(k) "manufacturing process" means any process for -- (i) making, altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, packing, oiling, washing, cleaning, breaking up, demolishing, or otherwise treating or adapting any article or substance with a view to its use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal, or (ii) pumping oil, water, sewage or any other substance; or (iii) generating, transforming or transmitting power; or (iv) composing types for printing, printing by letter press, lithography, photogravure or other similar process or book binding; or (v) constructing, reconstructing, repairing, refitting, finishing or breaking up ships or vessels; or (vi) preserving or storing any article in cold storage;" The argument of Mr. Lodha centres around the definition of 'manufacturing process'. According to him, the commercial activity of washing, cleaning or oiling of the vehicles at the Service Station does not make any change so far the article/vehicle is concerned. According to him, the article is neither treated nor adapted, but on the contrary, the article/vehicle is returned to the customers in the same form in which it is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y article or substance with a view to use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal. 6. I have given my careful consideration to the above submissions. Before I proceed further and refer to the various judgments cited before me, I would like to say few words for the Act i.e. Factories Act. It is undisputed that the Act is a social legislature and it provides for the health, safety, welfare and other aspects of the workers in the factories. In short, the Act is meant to provide protection to the workers from being exploited by the greedy business establishments and it also provides for the improvement of working conditions within the factory premises. An adequate machinery of instructions and strict observance of the directions are provided in the Act. Hence, a beneficial construction should be given and the provisions of the Act should be so construed/interpreted so as to achieve its object i.e. the welfare of the workers and their protection from exploitation and unhygienic working conditions in the factory premises. It is also a cardinal principle of interpretation to give effect to the plain, fair and ordinary meaning to the words if such interpretation is not opposed to the inten ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... State, AIR 1965 Raj 65 : (1965 (1) Cri LJ 333). That was a case of cold storage. The question involved in that case was as to whether the grading of the potatoes for storing in the cold storage or the process of drying of the potatoes amount to a manufacturing process or not. this question was considered in the light of the expression 'otherwise treating or adapting any article or substance with a view to its use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal' as contained in the definition of 'manufacturing process' given in the Act. After considering several authorities on the expression 'adopting for sale', this Court held as under at page 337 (of Cri LJ):-- "If the gradation or the sorting is with a view to bring into existence standardised goods of a particular category or variety saleable as such, I do not see any difficulty in treating grading or sorting as a manufacturing process. If, on the other hand, grading is only casual and is not done with a view to achieve the object indicated earlier, grading will not be a manufacturing process." Similarly, for the process of drying, it was held as under:-- "The process of drying has also to be c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ivered or disposed of in order to call the process as 'manufacturing process'. It was held as under:-- "The scheme of the Act seems to be that if washing and cleaning is one of the processes in a manufacturing concern, then the part of the premises where washing and cleaning is being done would be deemed to be 'manufacturing process'. Similarly, where only washing and cleaning process is run with power in such a way for example that coarse cloth is turned into fine cloth with the result that a superior marketable commodity, article or substance is produced, which is independently known in the market than the commodity, article or substance as it was before the same was washed or cleaned, then the process of washing and cleaning would be termed 'manufacturing process'. Therefore, in either of the aforesaid two situations, the process of washing and cleaning would come within the definition of 'manufacturing process'. The dry-cleaning business does not fall in any of the two." It may be stated here that the judgment of Madras High Court was based on the definition of 'manufacturing process' in a general term and not in relation to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... v. Triplex Dry Cleaners (supra), it was held that the word repairing should be read with the words 'any article or substance with a view to its use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal' coming thereafter. It was held as under:-- 5. "As regards service station for repairing motor cars, etc., the counsel for the Corporation wants it to be brought within the definition of 'manufacturing process' as per Section 2(k)(i) of the Factories Act wherein the word 'repairing' has been used. But this word has to be read along with the words 'any article or substance with a view to its use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal' coming thereafter. So, the process of repairing has to be with any of these views which would be completely missing in the business carried on in this case. This matter was dealt with by me in detail in FAO No. 405/1978 (ESI Corporation v. Triplex Dry Cleaners) decided on 22nd Oct. 1981 : (reported in 1982 Lab 1C 944) wherein the process of dry cleaning was sought to be included within the definition of 'manufacturing process' because the definition included the words 'washing and cleaning'. In that case I recorded ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erefore, the definition of word 'manufacturing process* means any process such as washing, cleaning and oiling in respect of the vehicle which is brought to the establishment of the appellant for making ready for delivery after the necessary process is undertaken, and such activities would be covered by the Act." That Hon'ble Judge observed as under (at page 55) ;-- "As stated earlier the service station undoubtedly offers washing service as well as oiling and cleaning service in order to make the article fit or suitable for use. Thus having regard to the interpretation of the phraseology 'manufacturing process' used in Section 2(k), Indian Penal Code, 1860 have no doubt in my mind that the service station does not carry on a manufacturing process in the form of washing, cleaning, oiling or otherwise treating any article with a view to its use and delivery to the customers. Such activities are therefore covered by the definition of the word 'manufacturing process". For the pumping of petrol/diesel pump, it has been held as under:-- 26. "The fact that pump is installed on the petrol tank and with the aid of the power the petrol is lifted ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h Court that the words 'or otherwise treating or adapting should be read independently and not in conjunction with the words making, altering, etc. etc. is correct as this interpretation is natural and in consonance to the literal interpretation of the words which are clear and unambiguous. Further, this interpretation also advances an achievement towards the object of the social legislature. Each activity mentioned in the definition is an independent one if the same is done with any article or substance with a view to its use, sale, transport, delivery or disposal. The word 'use', 'transport' or 'delivery' has not been defined in the Act. The Random House Dictionary defines the word 'use' as 'to employ for some purpose' 'put into service' 'making use of. In Oxford Dictionary, the word 'use' has been defined as 'using' 'employment' 'application to a purpose' 'availability' 'utility' 'purpose for which things can be used'. Therefore, if cleaning, washing or lubrication of vehicle is done at the service station for using that vehicle or for Us utility or for purpose for whi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... process will also be covered by the definition of manufacturing process' given in Section 2(k) of the Act. Such process may be like pumping of oil from refineries or pumping of oil from wells etc. Therefore, on this score I do not agree with the view taken by the Bombay High Court in Gateway Auto Service's case (supra) and I endorse the view taken by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Bhag Singh's case (supra). 16. The net result of the above discussion is that the activity of running of a petrol/ diesel pump is not covered by the definition of 'manufacturing process', while the process/ activities of 'cleaning', 'oiling', 'washing', 'lubricating' or 'repairing' of the vehicles at the service station, run by the petitioner, are covered by the above definition of 'manufacturing process'. In the said process, if the requisite number of workers are employed as mentioned in Section 2(m) of the Act, then, the premises is a factory and for running such factory a licence is necessary under Section 6 of the Act. 17. Consequently, this petition is allowed partly. The view of the Courts below with regard to petrol/diese ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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