Arak Municipality Pioneers Organizing Construction Site Safety; Formation of a Specialized Task Force to Combat One of the Country’s Most Important Causes of Fatal Accidents
The mayor of Arak announced the formation of a specialized construction site safety task force with the participation of executive, supervisory, and specialized bodies in Markazi Province, and emphasized: safeguarding workers’ lives and preventing deadly construction accidents is a legal and social responsibility, and Arak Municipality will take the lead in this area.
Dr. Mahmoudi, referring to the concerning statistics on work-related accidents in the country, stated: According to figures announced by the Deputy Minister for Labor Relations of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare in June 2026, about 38 percent of the country’s occupational accidents are related to the construction industry, and unfortunately 46 percent of accidents in this sector result in workers’ deaths. These statistics show that construction site safety must become one of the serious priorities of urban management and responsible agencies.
He added: The specialized construction site safety task force, proposed by the HSE Department of Arak Municipality and attended by the General Department of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare of Markazi Province, the General Department of Roads and Urban Development, the province’s Construction Engineering Organization, the Municipality’s Urban Planning and Architecture Deputy, the managers of the five municipal districts, and the Department of Enforcement and Construction Violations, will be formed so that, through division of duties, effective supervision, and continuous follow-up, preventable accidents can be avoided.
The mayor of Arak, stressing the need for precise implementation of laws and regulations, stated: Chapter 12 of the National Building Regulations, Fifth Edition (Safety, occupational health, and environment during execution), and the Construction Site Safety Regulations have assigned specific duties to executors, builders, employers, and supervisory bodies. Despite these rules, we still witness weaknesses in enforcement, lack of effective supervision, and repeated hazards such as falls from height, excavation collapses, electrocution, and unsafe construction equipment.
Dr. Mahmoudi, calling for the responsible implementation of the legal duties of relevant agencies, noted: The presence of qualified safety officers at sites that are legally required to employ them must be real and continuous, and should not be limited merely to naming a safety officer or submitting documents at the time of case formation. It is also expected that the Construction Engineering Organization, by activating its supervisory capacities, will refer cases of violations and professional negligence through legal channels to the organization’s disciplinary council and deal with offenders in accordance with regulations.
He continued: Within the framework of its legal powers, Arak Municipality will place on its agenda the reform of the permit issuance mechanism, related permits, and control of construction execution stages with a focus on safety requirements, so that verification and submission of documents related to compliance with HSE legal requirements, appropriate to the stage and type of construction operation, are taken into account in administrative and supervisory processes.
In conclusion, the mayor of Arak emphasized: Workers’ lives must not be sacrificed to the rush of construction, weak supervision, or failure to enforce laws. The goal of this task force is to move beyond purely administrative oversight and toward operational prevention, agency accountability, and the creation of an effective mechanism to reduce fatal accidents in construction sites. Safety must be a serious and non-negotiable requirement from the first stage of permit issuance until the completion of construction operations.