Section 1 — Short title, extent, commencement and application.

(1) This Act may be called the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970.

(2) It extends to the whole of India.

(3) It shall come into force on such date1as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

(4) It applies—

(a) to every establishment in which twenty or more workmen are employed or were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months as contract labour;

(b) to every contractor who employees or who employed on any day of the preceding twelve months twenty or more workmen:

Provided that the appropriate Government may, after giving not less than two months’ notice of its intention so to do, by notification in the Official Gazette, apply the provisions of this Act to any establishment or contractor employing such number of workmen less than twenty as may be specified in the notification.

(5) (a) It shall not apply to establishments in which work only of an intermittent or casual nature is performed.

(b) If a question arises whether work performed in an establishment is of an intermittent or casual nature, the appropriate Government shall decide that question after consultation with Central Board or, as the case may be, a State Board, and its decision shall be final.

Explanation.—For the purpose of this sub-section, work performed in an establishment shall not be deemed to be of an intermittent nature—

(i) if it was performed for more than one hundred and twenty days in the preceding twelve months, or (ii) if it is of a seasonal character and is performed for more than sixty days in a year.

STATE AMENDMENT Maharashtra Amendment of section 1 of 37 of 1970.—In Section 1 of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, in its application to the State of Maharashtra, in sub-section (4),—

(a) in clause (a), for the words “twenty or more workmen” the words “fifty or more workmen” shall be substituted;

(b) in clause (b), for the words “twenty or more workmen” the words “fifty or more workmen” shall be substituted;

(c) in the proviso, for the words “less than twenty” the words “less than fifty” shall be substituted. [Vide Maharashtra Act 2 of 2017, s. 2.] Andhra Pradesh Amendment of section 1 central Act 37 of 1970.—In the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, in section 1, in sub-section (4), in clauses (a), (b) and the provisio thereunder, for the word “twenty” the word “fifty” shall be substituted. [Vide Andhra Pradesh Act 21 of 2015, s. 2.] Uttar Pradesh In section 1 of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 hereinafter referred to as the principal Act, for sub-section (4) the following sub-section shall be substituted— “(4) It applies— (a) to every establishment in which fifty or more workmen are employed or were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months as contract labour; (b) to every contractor who employs or who employed on any day of the preceding twelve months fifty or more workmen. Provided that the State Government may, after giving not less than two months’ notice of its intention so to do, by notification in the Official Gazette, apply the provisions of this Act to any establishment or contractor employing such number of workmen less than fifty as may be specified in the notification.” [Vide the Uttar Pradesh Act 14 of 2018, s. 2]