| Abstract: |
Construction safety in developing regions of Northeast India remains critically understudied, despite the accelerated pace of government-funded infrastructure development. This empirical study investigates prevailing construction safety practices across government infrastructure projects in Mizoram, India, with a focus on worker training, compliance levels, accident patterns, and systemic barriers to safety implementation. A structured survey was administered to 150 respondents including site engineers, safety officers, project managers, and contractors working on Public Works Department (PWD) and other state government projects across Aizawl, Lunglei, Champhai, and Kolasib districts. Primary data were collected through a five-point Likert-scale instrument and supplemented with accident records, institutional reports, and project documentation. The findings reveal significant deficiencies in formal safety induction (74.7%), PPE compliance, and hazard management, with falls from height (18.7%), falling objects (14.7%), and machinery accidents (12.7%) as the most frequent incident types. A Compliance Index computed across nine safety parameters averaged 0.63, indicating moderate-to-low adherence. Barriers such as difficult terrain, budget constraints, inadequate enforcement, and workforce literacy are identified as major deterrents. The study concludes with policy recommendations for mandatory safety auditing, decentralized safety officer deployment, and legislative alignment with the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996, within the Mizoram construction ecosystem. |
