A plain-language guide to what Form 7 is, who it applies to, and how Nodal Healthcare keeps your factory compliant — end to end.
Form 7 is the prescribed Health Register under the Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963 — the state rules framed under the central Factories Act, 1948. It is the official statutory record in which a factory documents the periodic medical examinations of workers, particularly those employed in processes or operations classified as hazardous or dangerous to health.
The register must be maintained by the occupier (owner/management) of the factory and each entry verified and certified by a Certifying Surgeon — a medical practitioner formally appointed or recognised for this purpose under the Factories Act framework, typically empanelled with or recognised by the Directorate of Industrial Safety & Health (DISH), Government of Maharashtra.
In short: Form 7 is the paper (or digital) trail that proves your factory is monitoring worker health the way the law requires — and it is the document a Factory Inspector or DISH official will ask to see first during a compliance visit.
The Factories Act, 1948 (Section 41-C and related provisions) empowers state governments to prescribe medical examination requirements for workers engaged in hazardous processes, and to require employers to maintain health surveillance records.
Maharashtra gives effect to this through the Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963. Two provisions prescribe the Health Register: Rule 18(7) (Duties of Certifying Surgeon) requires the Certifying Surgeon, when examining workers in notified dangerous operations, to record the results in the Health Register in Form 7, kept by the factory manager; and Rule 73-V (Medical Examination, framed under Sections 41-B, 41-C and 112) requires workers in a hazardous process to be examined by the Factory Medical Officer before employment and every six months, with the details recorded in Form 7 and a Certificate of Fitness issued in Form 6. Rule 73-W requires an Occupational Health Centre staffed by a Factory Medical Officer holding an industrial-health qualification such as AFIH. (Note: Rule 70 of the Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963 deals with fire protection, not medical records — see the FAQ below.)
Compliance is monitored by the Directorate of Industrial Safety & Health (DISH), the Maharashtra government body responsible for factory inspection and industrial safety enforcement in the state.
Factories Act, 1948 (Sections 10, 41-C, 87) → Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963, Rules 18(7) & 73-V (state rules) → Form 7 Health Register (the document) → entries by the Factory Medical Officer (AFIH-qualified) and/or the Certifying Surgeon as the rule requires → monitored by DISH Maharashtra.
Factories that fail to maintain Form 7 correctly, or fail to conduct the required periodic examinations, can face penalties under the Factories Act and increased scrutiny during inspections — in addition to the underlying risk of undetected occupational illness among workers.
Form 7 applies specifically to workers engaged in processes notified as hazardous or dangerous to health under the Factories Act framework. Typical triggers include:
Workers regularly exposed to noise levels that pose a risk of hearing damage.
Roles involving airborne particulates, welding fumes or chemical vapours.
Direct handling of chemicals, solvents or other substances classified as hazardous.
Work in high-heat or cold-storage environments with physiological strain.
| Field | Detail Recorded |
|---|---|
| Worker identification | Name, age, sex, and identification / token number |
| Nature of work | Process or operation the worker is engaged in, and the hazard category |
| Date of examination | Date each periodic or pre-employment examination was conducted |
| Clinical findings | Results of the medical examination and any relevant test findings |
| Fitness certification | Certifying Surgeon's remarks on fitness for the specific process |
| Next due date | Date by which the next periodic examination is required |
| Certifying Surgeon's signature | Verification and certification for each entry |
We review your factory licence and process list to confirm which roles require Form 7 coverage.
Our AFIH-qualified occupational-health physician and technicians examine workers at your premises, with a Certifying Surgeon coordinated where the applicable rule requires their examination.
Findings are certified and recorded directly into Form 7 for each worker examined.
We maintain a digital copy and notify you ahead of each worker's next due examination date.
Form 7 is Maharashtra's form. Every other State and Union Territory prescribes its own Health Register under its own Factories Rules — see our Pan-India guide to the industrial health worker form for every state's form number — often with separate registers for Certifying Surgeon examinations (dangerous operations) and Factory Medical Officer examinations (hazardous processes). Nodal Healthcare runs the same on-site examination programme Pan-India and generates the state-correct register for each plant.
| State | Rules | Certifying Surgeon register (dangerous operations) | Factory Medical Officer register (hazardous process) | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maharashtra | Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963 | Form 7 (Rule 18) | Form 7 (Rule 73-V) | This page |
| Karnataka | Karnataka Factories Rules, 1969 | Form 26 (Rule 15) | Form 16 (Rule 88-L) | Form 26 guide → |
| Gujarat | Gujarat Factories Rules, 1963 | Form 20 (Rule 15) | Form 32 (Rule 68-T) | Form 20 guide → |
| Tamil Nadu | Tamil Nadu Factories Rules, 1950 | Form 17 (Rule 14) | Confirmed per client with DISH TN | Form 17 guide → |
| Uttar Pradesh | Uttar Pradesh Factories Rules, 1950 | Form 27 (schedules) | Form 27 (Rule 63-I) | Uttar Pradesh page → |
| All other States & UTs | State Factories Rules | Published after primary-source verification — see the state page | State index → | |
No. While the Factories Act, 1948 is a central law, each state frames its own factory rules and prescribes its own form numbers. Form 7 specifically refers to the Health Register format under the Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963. Other states use their own equivalent forms under their respective state factory rules.
No. Rule 70 of Maharashtra Factories Rules, 1963 deals with fire protection — means of escape, fire-fighting equipment and related precautions — and has nothing to do with medical records. The Form 7 Health Register is prescribed by Rule 18(7) (Certifying Surgeon examinations in dangerous operations) and Rule 73-V (Factory Medical Officer examinations in hazardous processes), with the Occupational Health Centre under Rule 73-W. If a checklist or proposal cites Rule 70 for the Health Register, treat it as an error; we map every Form 7 entry to the correct rule so it stands up to a DISH Maharashtra inspection.
For hazardous-process factories, yes in practice: Rule 73-W requires an Occupational Health Centre under a Factory Medical Officer holding a recognised industrial-health qualification, and the AFIH (Associate Fellow of Industrial Health) awarded by DGFASLI is that qualification. The AFIH doctor conducts the Rule 73-V examinations recorded in Form 7. An AFIH qualification does not make a doctor a Certifying Surgeon — that is a separate State Government appointment needed for the Rule 18 dangerous-operation examinations, which we coordinate separately. See AFIH Doctor Services.
It depends on the provision. For notified dangerous operations (Rule 18 and the Rule 114 schedules), the Certifying Surgeon — appointed or authorised by the State Government under Section 10 of the Factories Act, 1948 — examines the workers and signs the register. For hazardous processes under Rule 73-V, the pre-employment and six-monthly examinations are carried out by the Factory Medical Officer (typically an AFIH-qualified doctor) and recorded in Form 7, with the Certifying Surgeon involved on appeal or when a worker is found unfit. Nodal Healthcare provides AFIH-qualified doctors and coordinates appropriately authorised/empanelled Certifying Surgeons where the rule requires them.
Typically yearly for most workers in notified hazardous processes, with half-yearly examinations for those in higher-exposure roles (e.g. very high noise or dust environments). The exact frequency depends on the hazard classification of the specific process, as determined during our on-site assessment.
Inspecting officers can flag the factory for non-compliance under the Factories Act, which may lead to penalties, follow-up notices, or further scrutiny of the unit's overall safety compliance. Maintaining an accurate, up-to-date Form 7 register significantly reduces this risk.
Yes. We manage hazard assessment, scheduling, on-site examinations, certification, Form 7 entry, digital record-keeping and renewal reminders — so your team doesn't have to manage the process manually.
Send us your factory's process list and we'll tell you exactly what's required — no obligation.
