India India Revamps Rules on Boiler Operation Engineers and Attendants

India Occupational Safety and Health
28 October 2025  EnviX_jet_jp  Wei Jie Woo (EnviX, Ltd.)
India Revamps Rules on Boiler Operation Engineers and Attendants

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India published and enforced the “Boiler Operation Engineers’ Rules, 2025” on September 22, 2025, superseding the “Boiler Operation Engineers Rules, 2021.” Then, on September 29, the “Boiler Attendants Rules, 2025,” which supersedes the “Boiler Attendants Rules, 2011,” was also published and enforced. Under the Boilers Act 2025, which was revamped in 2025, entities using boilers are obligated to assign personnel to supervise the boilers’ operation. The two rules published thus supplement this obligation, establishing two types of boiler personnel namely “operation engineer” and “attendant,” who must pass a national examination administered by the authorities in order to be certified.

 

Differences between an operation engineer and an attendant are summarized below. Operation engineers have stricter certification requirements but are allowed to be responsible for a greater number of boilers. Attendants are further divided into First Class and Second Class Attendants, where the number of boilers they can be responsible for and their certification requirements differ slightly.

  Operation Engineer Attendant
Certification Name Operation Engineer First Class Attendant or Second Class Attendant
Limit of supervision of boilers A single boiler, or two or more boilers connected in a battery, or many separate individual boilers within a radius of 50 m having a total heating surface more than 1000 m2 First Class Attendant: A single boiler, or two or more boilers connected in a battery, or many separate individual boilers within a radius of 30 m having a total heating surface equal to or less than 1000 m2
Second Class Attendant: A single boiler having a total heating surface equal to or less than 200 m2
Distance from the boilers Within 100 m Within 10 m
Eligibility Criteria Age 23 and above, possesses a Mechanical, Electrical or Chemical etc. related bachelor‘s degree or diploma.

  • In case of bachelor’s degree holder, has a post qualification experience of two years in operation or  maintenance of boilers
  • In case of diploma holders, has a post qualification experience of five years
 First Class Attendant: Age 22 and above, holds a second class attendant certificate and fits one of the following criteria:

  • Has served for two years as second class attendant in charge of boiler with heating surface of not less than 50 m2
  • Completed a year of training as an apprentice in repairing or manufacturing engines and boilers, and in addition has served a year as second class attendant in charge of boiler with heating surface of not less than 50 m2
  • Served two years as fireman or assistant fireman with second class attendant certificate under the charge of a first class boiler attendant

 

Second Class Attendant: Age 20 and above, has passed matriculation or equivalent examination, and fits one of the following criteria:

  • Served two years in the capacity of a fireman of steam boiler
  • Served three years as a fitter where boilers are manufactured or erected, operated or repaired
  • In case of Industrial Training Institutes certificate holder, served two years on small industrial boilers

 

Download the Rules from links below:

Author / Responsibility

Wei Jie Woo
EnviX_jet_jp