Health Safety & Wellbeing

Document Reference Number: - VIL/HSW/STD/05

Document Title – STREETWORK AND UNDERGROUND WORK
STANDARD
Version – 1

Dated – 1st September 2018

Document owner

Vodafone Idea Ltd. – Corporate Health Safety & Wellbeing

1. Philosophy

Vodafone Idea Limited Culture of Care finds expression in its commitment to ensuring safe working
conditions for not only its employees but all those who work for Vodafone Idea Ltd. – directly, indirectly
through its partners. Given the nature of our business, street work / underground work activities are
essential to support the business & customer requirements. It is imperative for us to take all possible
precautions to ensure the safety of members of the public, that personnel working for us / on our behalf
are aware of the risks and controls required and they work safe to go home safe.

2. Purpose & Scope

Street work and underground work activities may pose serious risks to the personnel working for or on
behalf of Vodafone Idea Ltd as well as to the member of public.
Underground work activities include but not limited to any laying / maintenance of optical fibre cable
(OFC), any excavation work for plumbing, build / maintenance of earth pits, build / maintenance of
foundation for cell-site towers, poles, hoardings, etc.
Street work activities include but not limited to any work for OFC patrolling, overhead cabling, OFC laying
and maintenance, signage, hoardings, any work that essentially would necessitate safeguard against
pedestrian and / or vehicular traffic.
This document aims to provide minimum standard on safe work system to prevent any harm to a
personnel or damage to any property that may occur during street work and underground activities for
the business purpose of Vodafone Idea Ltd.

3. Definition

 Statutory permissions (Right of Way) – various statutory /regulatory permissions like right of way
from state and private authorities like the Municipal Corporation, National Highway, Electrical / Gas
supply corporations etc.
 Traffic control – measures to warn on-coming traffic about the work activity in progress like posting
warning cones, putting warning tape, barricades, posting a signal man, etc.

4. Standards

4.1 Design and before commencing work

4.1.1. All street-work / underground work activities must start after receiving necessary statutory
permissions (Right of Way) to ensure no public utility connections are affected and there is
minimum risk.
4.1.2. All street-work / underground work activities must be planned with considerations on safe access,
execution and the type of activity to be performed. The planning must consider:
a. Alignment with the Health and Safety Plan as approved by Vodafone Idea Ltd.
b. Inclusion of site specific risk assessments
c. Avoidance of buried services where possible
d. Avoidance of entry into confined space where possible
e. Types of cable laying methods available.
4.1.3. Street-work at height / underground work must be controlled by following a permit to work (PTW)
process ensuring risk assessment before commencement of activity which also ensures that all
required tools, equipment & resources required for the task are in place. Risk assessment process

VIL/HSW/STD/05 – Street work & Underground work – V1/1st Sep 2018 Page | 1
 must consider aspects for example underground utility lines, presence of flammable materials or
substances in line with trenching area, pedestrian / road traffic, structural collapse, flooding,
confined space, etc. for underground work and proximity to overhead electrical cables, working
at height, pedestrian / road traffic, etc. for street work.
4.1.4. Additional / specific risks including but not limited to snake / animal bite, falling of tree / branches
/ other fixed structure, leakage in toxic / flammable gas pipes, electrocution, drowning,
asphyxiation, stale substances, must be considered and mitigated appropriately.
4.1.5. Where excavation is required near to possible buried services (e.g. electricity cables, natural gas
and LPG pipelines, water pipes, sewers, petrochemical pipelines, communication lines, etc.),
sufficient time and resource must be provided to ensure the excavation is carried out safely. There
are 4 basic elements to the safe system of work that should be employed when working on or
near buried services:
a. Contact utility operators for plans of buried services;
b. Survey the intended route
c. Detect , identify and mark underground services;
d. Employ safe excavation/safe digging practices.
4.1.6. All selected equipment and tools must be fit for use and safe to ensure that improper selection of
the tool itself doesn’t pose any hazard to an individual or equipment. Mechanical excavators if
used, must be fit for the purpose, suitable to the type of soil and must be operated by a licensed
operator.
4.1.7. Traffic control measures like hard barricading, cordoning off, warning signs, signal man, etc. as
appropriate must be in place before commencement of job to prevent any stoppage of work,
danger to people and also to restrict unauthorized access. The barricading / warning signage must
be such that they are visible at day and night.
4.1.8. Appropriate welfare facilities (in terms of nearby public toilets, adequate supply of drinking water,
water and soap for hand washing, designated clean areas in vehicles for storage of food and
water, etc.) must be available for all team members.
4.1.9. All team members including supervisor, patroller, general labor, machine operator (splicer,
horizontal directional drilling operator, crane operator, excavator, demolisher), Fault Restoration
Team (FRT) vehicle driver, etc. must be physically fit, experienced and trained as per Table 1 in
Appendix.

4.2 During work

4.2.1 All street-work / underground work activities must be supervised during the course of work.
4.2.2 During laying / maintenance of OFC cable, safe system of work must be followed for cable drum
handling, cable pulling, laser safety, cable splicing, use of hazardous chemical as a cleaner, etc.
4.2.3 Street-work / Underground work activities must be restricted during adverse weather and during
hours of darkness. If it is not possible to reschedule the work, an approval must be taken from a
designated Vodafone Idea Ltd. employee. The working location must be sufficiently illuminated.
Hard barricades e.g. modular type, signage and lighting must be provided if the excavated area is
to be left open during the hours of darkness.

VIL/HSW/STD/05 – Street work & Underground work – V1/1st Sep 2018 Page | 2
4.2.4 All personnel must use Vodafone Idea Ltd. approved standard Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) complying to European (EN) standard or equivalent relevant Indian Standard (IS) as per the
work undertaken
a. High visibility clothing / Reflective wear
b. Safety footwear - EN 345
c. Hard hat - EN 397
d. Eye protection as necessary – EN 166
e. Gloves – EN 420
f. Hearing protection (EN 352) and anti-vibration gloves (EN 388) must be used by persons
using horizontal directional drilling machines / pneumatic ground breakers.
4.2.5 In case the excavation is undertaken exclusively for Vodafone Idea Ltd. purpose, then adequate
support systems, such as shoring / bracing / underpinning, etc., must be ensured to prevent
collapse of excavated earth and to ensure that adjacent structures remain stable. Excavated earth
must be placed adequately away from the place of work to prevent collapse.
4.2.6 First aid box, adequate fire extinguishers, temporary electrical extension boards confirming to IP
44 for ingress protection, temporary sheds separate for safe storage of empty & filled gas
cylinders (when they are in use), must be available with the team.
4.2.7 Patrollers monitoring other excavation works to prevent cuts / damage to Vodafone Idea Limited
cables / equipment, must be aware of the risks associated in terms of heavy vehicles traffic,
excavated areas, etc. and stay clear from the hazards.

Journey management / work at height / electrical work involved while undertaking street work /
underground work must be in accordance with the requirements of relevant Vodafone Idea Ltd.
Standards.

Violation / deviation of any requirement of this standard needs to be reported as per the incident
management process and actions taken as per Consequence Management Matrix.

Additional guidance where required for implementation of this Standard will be provided by Vodafone
Idea Ltd. Corporate HSW.

5. Authorized By

Suvamoy Roy Choudhury Vishant Vora

Chief Human Resource Officer Chief Technology Officer

VIL/HSW/STD/05 – Street work & Underground work – V1/1st Sep 2018 Page | 3
 Appendix 1

Table 1: Competency check - Following criteria should be followed on eligibility, qualification &
experience
Age Training to be
Role Experience criteria Qualification / Eligibility imparted by the
(years) Contractor / Vendor
Induction Training
on Basic Safety
3 years’ experience including Expect the
on street- Unexpected (ETU),
work/underground Min. 21 & Graduate /Diploma/ITI / Risk assessment and
Supervisor
job including above 10+2 PTW process,
negotiation and emergency
managerial skill preparedness, First-
Aid , Absolute Safety
Rules (ASRs)
Induction Training
1 year experience Clear understanding on Basic Safety
Min. 19 &
General labour in related job and related to job like digging, including ETU,
above
topography drilling, trenching etc. emergency
preparedness, ASRs
Induction Training
on Basic Safety
Valid 2W driving licence,
1 year experience including ETU,
Min. 19 & clear understanding
Patroller in related job , emergency
above related to job like digging,
topography preparedness, ASRs,
drilling, trenching etc.
2 wheeler defensive
driving
Machine Induction Training
operator (HDD, 1 year experience on Basic Safety
Min. 19 & valid licence for operating
Splicer, Crane, in related job and including ETU,
above machine
Excavator, topography emergency
Demolisher) preparedness, ASRs
Workers involved in electrical, work at height, Trained as per Driving, Electrical & Work at Height
driving Standards

VIL/HSW/STD/05 – Street work & Underground work – V1/1st Sep 2018 Page | 4