The Boilers Act, 1923

(1) This Act may he called the 1*** Boilers Act, 1923. 2[(2) It extends to the whole of India 3***.] (3) It shall come into force on such date4 as the Central Government may, by notification in theOfficial Gazette, appoint.

In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,-- 1[(a) "accident" means an explosion of boiler, or boiler component, which is calculated to weakenthe strength or an uncontrolled release of water or steam therefrom, liable to cause death or injury toany person or damage to any property;] 2[(aa) "Board" means the Central Boilers Board constituted under section 27A;] 3[(b) "boiler" means a pressure vessel in which steam is generated for use external to itself byapplication of heat which is wholly or partly under pressure when steam is shut off but does notinclude a pressure vessel,-- (i) with capacity less than 25 liters (such capacity being measured from the feed check valveto the main steam stop valve); (ii) with less than one kilogram per centimeter square design gauge pressure and workinggauge pressure; or (iii) in which water is heated below one hundred degrees centigrade; (ba) "boiler component" means steam piping, feed piping, economiser, superheater, anymounting or other fitting and any other external or internal part of a boiler which is subject topressure exceeding one kilogram per centimeter square gauge;] 4[(c) "Chief Inspector", "Deputy Chief Inspector" and "Inspector" mean, respectively, a personappointed to be a Chief Inspector, a Deputy Chief Inspector and an Inspector under this Act;] 5[(ca) "Competent Authority" means an institution recognised in such manner as may beprescribed by regulations for issue of certificate to the welders for welding of boiler and boilercomponents; (cb) "Competent Person" means a person recognised in such manner as may be prescribed byregulations for inspection and certification of boilers and boiler components during manufacture,erection and use. All Inspectors shall be ipso facto competent persons;] 6[(cc) "economiser" means any part of a feed-pipe that is wholly or partially exposed to the actionof flue gases for the purpose of recovery of waste heat; (ccc) "feed-pipe" means any pipe or connected fitting wholly or partly under pressure throughwhich feed water passes directly to a boiler and 7[which] does not form an integral part thereof;] 8[(ccd) "Inspecting Authority" means an institution recognised in such manner as may beprescribed by regulations for the inspection and certification of boilers and boiler components duringmanufacture. All Chief Inspectors of Boilers shall be ipso facto Inspecting Authorities;] (cce) "manufacture" means manufacture, construction and fabrication of boiler or boilercomponent, or both; (ccf) "manufacturer" means a person engaged in the manufacture; (d) "owner"9[includes any person possessing or] using a boiler as agent of the owner thereof andany person using a boiler which he has hired or obtained on loan from the owner thereof; (e) "prescribed" means prescribed by regulations or rules made under this Act; 10[(f) "steam pipe" means any pipe through which steam passes if-- (i) the pressure at which steam passes through such pipe exceeds 3.5 kilogram per squarecentimeters above atmospheric pressure, or (ii) such pipe exceeds 254 millimeters in internal diameter and the pressure of steamexceeds 1 kilogram per square centimeters above the atmospheric pressure, and includes in either case any connected fitting of a steam-pipe;] 11[(g) "structural alteration, addition or renewal" means,-- (i) any change in the design of a boiler or boiler component; (ii) replacement of any part of boiler or boiler component by a part which does not conformto the same specification; or (iii) any addition to any part of a boiler or boiler component; (h) "superheater" means any equipment which is partly or wholly exposed to flue gases for thepurpose of raising the temperature of steam beyond the saturation temperature at that pressure andincludes a re-heater; (i) "Technical Adviser" means the Technical Adviser appointed under sub-section (1) of section4A.]

1[2A. Application of Act to feed-pipes.--Every reference in this Act (except where the wordsteam-pipe' is used in clause (f) of section 2), to a steam-pipe or steam-pipes shall be deemed toinclude also a reference to a feed-pipe or feed-pipes, respectively.]

1[2B. Application of Act to economisers.--Every reference in this Act to a boiler or boilers[except in clause (ccc) of section 2 2*** 3***] shall be deemed to include also a reference to aneconomiser or economisers, respectively.]

1Nothing in this Act shall apply to-- (a) locomotive boilers belonging to or under the control of the railways; (b) any boiler or boiler component, -- (i) in any vessel propelled wholly or in part by the agency of steam; (ii) belonging to, or under the control of, the Army, Navy or Air Force; or (iii) appertaining to a sterilizer disinfector used in hospitals or nursing homes, if theboiler does not exceed one hundred liters in capacity.