Head – EHS

Location: Angul, Odisha

Function: Environment, Health & Safety

Reporting To: Plant Head / Executive Director

Level: Senior Leadership

1. Job Purpose

Lead and drive the Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) function for a 12 MTPA integrated steel plant, ensuring a secure, compliant and sustainable workplace across existing operations as well as ongoing expansion and brownfield projects.

The role will provide strategic and operational leadership for occupational safety, process safety, construction/project safety, contractor safety, emergency preparedness and safety culture transformation, with a strong focus on preventing fatalities, serious injuries and high-potential incidents.

The incumbent will establish robust EHS systems, strengthen risk-based safety management, ensure statutory compliance, and embed visible safety leadership and a Zero Harm culture across employees, contractors and project partners.

2. Key Responsibilities

A. Strategic Safety Leadership

- Develop and implement the plant's overall Safety Strategy, Roadmap and Annual Action Plan aligned with business objectives and expansion plans.
- Provide leadership and direction to the EHS team across all operating units, projects and support functions.
- Establish and drive Safety KPIs, leading indicators and performance dashboards for the plant.
- Periodically review safety performance with Plant Leadership and drive corrective and preventive actions.
- Build a strong Safety Ownership culture, making line functions accountable for safety rather than treating EHS as the sole custodian.
- Drive behavioural safety and visible safety leadership initiatives across the organization.

B. Operational & Process Safety

- Ensure robust safety management across critical steel-making operations including:
- Blast Furnace
- Coke Oven / By-product areas
- Sinter / Pellet Plants
- Steel Melting Shop
- Continuous Casting
- Rolling Mills
- Power & Utility systems
- Material Handling and Logistics
- Oxygen / Gas systems
- Workshops and maintenance activities.

- Identify and manage high-risk activities and Major Accident Hazards (MAHs).
- Drive Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (HIRA), Job Safety Analysis (JSA), risk assessments and implementation of critical controls.
- Strengthen Permit-to-Work (PTW), Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), confined space, work-at-height, hot work and excavation safety systems.
- Establish and monitor Critical Safety Rules / Life Saving Rules and ensure strict compliance.
- Drive Process Safety Management practices for hazardous processes, gases, chemicals, pressure systems and energy isolation.
- Ensure effective management of change (MOC) for process, equipment, technology and organizational changes.

C. Expansion & Project Safety

- Lead the EHS framework for the plant's expansion projects, ensuring safety is integrated from engineering and design through commissioning and stabilization.
- Establish project-specific EHS standards, systems and governance mechanisms for EPC contractors and project teams.
- Review safety considerations during design, engineering, constructability and commissioning stages.
- Ensure appropriate safety-by-design principles are incorporated into new facilities and equipment.
- Drive contractor mobilization, induction, competency assessment and EHS compliance before commencement of work.
- Monitor construction activities involving heavy lifting, structural erection, mechanical/electrical installation, height work, excavation, commissioning and energization.
- Ensure effective SIMOPS (Simultaneous Operations) management between construction and operating areas.
- Lead project safety audits, inspections and high-risk activity reviews.
- Ensure safe transition from project execution to operations through pre-commissioning, commissioning and operational readiness assessments.

D. Contractor & Workforce Safety

- Establish a robust Contractor Safety Management System covering selection, onboarding, competency, training,



supervision and performance evaluation.
- Drive contractor safety performance through defined KPIs, audits and performance reviews.
- Ensure competency-based training for employees, contractors, drivers, supervisors and frontline workforce.
- Strengthen safety induction and refresher training systems.
- Drive safety campaigns and targeted interventions for high-risk activities and vulnerable workforce segments.

E. Incident Prevention & Investigation

- Lead investigation of fatalities, serious injuries, high-potential incidents, near misses and major process safety events.
- Ensure structured Root Cause Analysis using appropriate methodologies.
- Develop and track corrective/preventive actions and verify their effectiveness.
- Establish a robust near-miss and unsafe-condition reporting culture.
- Identify recurring incident trends and deploy plant-wide preventive interventions.
- Share learnings across departments and integrate them into standards, training and risk assessments.

F. Emergency Preparedness & Crisis Management

- Establish and periodically review the plant's Emergency Preparedness & Response Plan.
- Ensure preparedness for fire, gas leaks, explosions, chemical exposure, structural failures, medical emergencies and other major incidents.
- Conduct mock drills and emergency simulations for identified major accident scenarios.
- Strengthen coordination with Fire Services, Medical Services, Security, Operations and external emergency agencies.
- Ensure adequate emergency response infrastructure, rescue equipment and trained emergency response teams.
- Lead EHS response during major incidents and provide technical inputs to plant leadership.

G. Safety Systems, Audits & Compliance

- Establish and continuously improve the plant's EHS Management System.
- Ensure compliance with applicable statutory requirements, licenses, permits and safety regulations.
- Coordinate statutory inspections, regulatory audits and external certifications.
- Conduct periodic EHS audits, compliance audits and management system reviews.
- Ensure closure of audit observations within defined timelines.
- Maintain robust documentation, procedures, standards and safety records.
- Benchmark the plant's safety practices against leading steel industry standards and global best practices.

H. Safety Culture & Behavioural Transformation

- Drive the transition from compliance-driven safety to ownership-driven safety.
- Develop and implement behavioural safety programs across levels.
- Strengthen Safety Observation / Safety Interaction / Near-Miss Reporting mechanisms.
- Develop frontline safety leadership capabilities among supervisors and managers.
- Conduct leadership safety walks and management safety interactions.
- Promote employee participation through safety committees, campaigns, recognition and suggestion mechanisms.
- Build a culture where employees and contractors are empowered and expected to Stop Work when an unsafe condition exists.

I. Occupational Health & Industrial Hygiene

- Work closely with the plant hospital/medical team to identify and manage occupational health risks.
- Drive industrial hygiene programs covering dust, fumes, gases, noise, heat stress, vibration, radiation and chemical exposure.
- Ensure occupational health surveillance for identified risk groups.
- Monitor workplace exposure levels and recommend engineering and administrative controls.
- Strengthen health emergency preparedness for high-risk operations.

J. EHS Analytics & Digitalization

- Develop real-time EHS dashboards and leading-indicator monitoring systems.




- Use data analytics to identify high-risk areas, recurring unsafe conditions and emerging safety trends.
- Drive digitalization of inspections, permits, incident reporting, audits, action tracking and contractor safety monitoring.
- Establish predictive safety indicators to enable proactive risk management.

3. Key Deliverables / KPIs

- Zero fatalities and zero serious/high-potential incidents
- Reduction in Total Recordable Injury Frequency Rate (TRIFR) and Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR)
- Reduction in high-potential incidents and repeat incidents
- Closure of critical audit and risk assessment observations within defined timelines
- Compliance with statutory EHS requirements
- Contractor safety performance and compliance
- Critical risk control effectiveness
- PTW / LOTO / confined space / work-at-height compliance
- Near-miss and unsafe-condition reporting and closure
- Safety training and competency compliance
- Emergency preparedness and mock-drill effectiveness
- EHS performance of expansion/project activities
- Safety readiness of current facilities prior to commissioning
- Improvement in safety culture and employee/contractor safety engagement

4. Key Interfaces

The role will work closely with:
- Plant Head / Executive Leadership
- Operations & Manufacturing
- Projects & Engineering
- Maintenance
- HR & IR
- Medical / Hospital
- Fire & Emergency Services
- Security
- Environment
- Quality
- Procurement & Contracts
- Logistics
- EPC / PMC agencies
- Contractors and other external stakeholders
- Statutory and regulatory authorities

5. Education & Experience

Essential:

- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, preferably Mechanical / Electrical / Chemical / Metallurgy / Industrial Engineering.
- Degree/Diploma in Industrial Safety / Safety Engineering from a recognized institution, as applicable under statutory requirements.
- 18–25 years or 12-15 years(in case of Master's) of relevant experience in EHS/Safety, preferably in large-scale integrated steel, metals, heavy engineering, mining or other high-hazard industries.
- Significant experience in leading safety for large manufacturing operations and brownfield/greenfield expansion projects.
- Strong experience in contractor safety, process safety, incident investigation and statutory compliance.

Desirable:

- Master's qualification in Safety / Industrial Safety / Environmental Management.
- Professional certifications in NEBOSH / IOSH / CSP or equivalent.
- Experience in managing safety for a large integrated steel plant.
- Experience in commissioning and ramp-up of major industrial projects.

6. Competencies

Functional Competencies

- Industrial & Process Safety
- Risk Assessment & Critical Risk Management
- Construction & Project Safety
- Contractor Safety Management
- Incident Investigation & RCA
- Emergency & Crisis Management
- Statutory EHS Compliance
- Safety Management Systems
- Behaviour-Based Safety
- Occupational Health & Industrial Hygiene
- EHS Auditing & Governance
- EHS Analytics and Digital Tools

Leadership Competencies

- Strategic Thinking
- Strong Safety Leadership & Influence
- Decision Making
- Risk-Based Thinking
- Stakeholder Management
- Crisis Management
- Change Management
- Developing Safety Culture
- High Accountability and Execution Orientation

7. Role Profile

This role is expected to be more than a compliance/audit-oriented Safety Head. The incumbent will be the overall safety custodian and strategic partner to Plant and Project leadership, with particular accountability for managing the heightened risk arising from simultaneous large-scale expansion, construction, commissioning and ongoing plant operations.

The ideal candidate should therefore have demonstrated experience in leading safety transformation in complex, high-hazard industrial environments, with the ability to influence senior leadership as well as engage directly with frontline employees and contractors.

📌 HOD (Angul)
🏢 Jindal Steel
📍 Angul