Over the past few years, we have witnessed several environmental disasters, including raging forest fires, extreme weather conditions, volcanic eruptions, typhoons, floods, landslides, etc. These have adversely impacted development efforts worldwide and can be attributed to increased industrial activity across the world. Thus, industry has a big role to play in reversing this damage.
This is where the role of having a robust EHS framework comes into the picture. EHS, which stands for Environment, Health and Safety, is a general term that refers to regulations, laws, rules and workplace efforts to safeguard the health and safety of workers and the public and protect the environment from industrial hazards associated with the workplace. Incorporating Environment, Health and Safety practices at the workplace is foundational for every enterprise.
Here’s a detailed overview of EHS-
- E stands for Environment- This covers spills, chemical waste, radioactive waste, trash, sewage, etc. that could not only harm the environment, but could also increase health risks for workers and people residing in the area. EHS compliant organisations take steps to reduce harmful chemical releases and emissions and manage the disposal of hazardous waste. This not only ensures the safety of the workers and people living in the vicinity of the industrial unit, but also protects the environment from harm.
- H stands for Health– This includes taking care of the health of the workers by protecting them from airborne particles, radiation, biological pathogens and other toxins that could pose serious health hazards. Implementation of health safety programs show employees that businesses care about their well-being and make them feel valuable.
- S stands for Safety– Workplace accidents sometimes occur in large factories. Every year, thousands of people are adversely impacted by deaths of injuries due to avoidable mishaps at work. Thus, safety of workers must be the top priority for all businesses and effective steps must be taken to avoid unfortunate incidents at the workplace. Fewer workplace mishaps make employees feel safer which has a positive effect on workers’ morale, productivity levels and overall efficiency.
CII EHS Excellence Awards 2021 – 14th Edition
For over a decade, CII has played an active role in facilitating adoption of EHS best practices among its members through the coveted ‘Excellence Award in Environment, Health & Safety.’ The CII-EHS Excellence Awards endeavour to raise the bar on EHS practices across industry with a view to foster an industrial climate in India that is in harmony with Nature, while protecting the health and safety of all stakeholders.
The award has been instituted to acknowledge sustained contributions and innovation by organizations towards:
- Protecting and conserving scarce natural resources
- Monitoring pollution caused by industrial waste and emissions
- Building healthy and discrimination free workplaces
- Promoting best practices in safety to improve employee performance and productivity
The winners are selected based on sector specific assessments by well-trained assessors. The findings of the assessments are reviewed by eminent industry specialists and each participating company is provided with a detailed feedback report. Based on the evaluation, winners for the sectoral best performers, special awards and EHS best practices awards are selected under various categories.
The EHS Excellence Awards help organizations gain knowledge about the latest practices and trends in EHS and obtain valuable insights through the detailed and comprehensive assessment process. This further facilitates adoption of robust EHS practices among organisations and helps them improve their EHS performance.
Over the years, the awards are taking different growth directions and being continuously improvised to meet the evolving requirements and norms.
To know more about the CII-EHS awards, visit – www.ciisrehsawards.com