Can You Put CCTV in a Factory Canteen or Locker Room in India? The Decision Table (2026)
Can you put a camera in the factory canteen, locker room or changing room? As of 15 Oct 2026: yes on the canteen doors, serving counter and food store, with notice. No camera inside a locker room or changing room: IT Act s.66E punishes capturing a person's undressed body with up to 3 years, a ₹2 lakh fine, or both.
Last checked: 15 Oct 2026
By the Mama Editorial Team. This page answers one narrow owner question, "things go missing from the lockers, can I put a camera there?". The wider list of no-camera zones (washrooms, creche, first-aid room) lives in where you may never put a camera in an Indian factory.
Key takeaways
- No Indian statute bans a camera in a factory canteen as such. We found no such prohibition in the OSH Code 2020, the OSH (Central) Rules 2026 or the DPDP Act 2023 (checked 15 Oct 2026). The dining tables are still the wrong place for a lens: a theft or hygiene purpose is served by the doors and counter, and the Puttaswamy proportionality test asks for no more than the purpose needs.
- Locker rooms and changing rooms are privacy rooms by law. Rule 50 of the OSH (Central) Rules 2026 says bathing places and locker facilities must be "capable of being secured from inside to secure privacy". Rule 51 adds a separate changing room with individual lockers.
- The criminal exposure is personal and gender-neutral. IT Act s.66E covers capturing the "undergarment clad" body of any person. BNS s.77 makes filming a woman "covered only in underwear" voyeurism, with 1–3 years on a first conviction.
- Locker theft is solved at the door and at the locker, not inside the room. One camera on the locker-room entrance, individual lockable lockers and a key register give you the time window an inquiry needs.
- Worker notice and a written retention period belong with every lawful camera on this page. The DPDP Act's ss.3–17 (including s.7 and s.8) and DPDP Rules 3 and 6 come into force in May 2027, eighteen months after the 13 Nov 2025 notifications (G.S.R. 843(E) and 846(E)).
Verified against
- The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (No. 37 of 2020), s.24 welfare facilities. Gazette of India, 28 Sep 2020
- Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (Central) Rules, 2026, G.S.R. 345(E), 8 May 2026: rules 50, 51, 53 and 83(d). Gazette of India
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (No. 45 of 2023), s.77 voyeurism. Gazette of India
- Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008 (No. 10 of 2009), inserting s.66E into the IT Act, 2000. Gazette copy hosted by the UP government
- Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (No. 22 of 2023): ss.4, 5, 6, 7(i), 8(5), 8(7) and the Schedule. MeitY PDF
- Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, G.S.R. 846(E), 13 Nov 2025: rules 1, 3 and 6. Gazette of India
- DPDP Act commencement notification, G.S.R. 843(E), 13 Nov 2025. Gazette of India
- Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) v Union of India, W.P.(C) 494 of 2012, judgment of 24 Aug 2017. Supreme Court PDF
- Checked 15 Oct 2026.
The decision table: area, camera, conditions
OSH Code s.24(1) itself requires the canteen and the separate bathing places and locker rooms, and leaves the detail of welfare facilities to what is "prescribed by the Central Government". Rules 50–53 of the OSH (Central) Rules 2026 spell out what each room is for. Other conditions for a factory, such as women's night work, are set by your state: the Central Rules' night-work conditions (r.83) bind central-sphere establishments, and state rules can add to the table. Check your state's current position.
| Area | Camera allowed? | Conditions (angle, signage, retention) | Legal hook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canteen entry and exit doors | Yes | Lens on the door from outside or just inside, framed on the threshold. Bilingual sign at the door. Written retention period | OSH (Central) Rules 2026 r.53(v): canteen "has separate doors for entry and exit" |
| Serving counter, cash or coupon point | Yes | Frame the counter top and the cashbox, not the queue's faces at table height | DPDP Act s.7(i): employment use, "safeguarding the employer from loss" |
| Kitchen store room, pantry | Yes | Frame shelves and the door. Tell canteen staff and the contractor in writing | DPDP Act s.7(i); r.53(iv) lists the store room as a separate space |
| Dining hall tables | Avoid | Theft or hygiene purpose rarely needs the tables. Keep the frame on doors and counter | Puttaswamy proportionality; DPDP Act s.8(7): erase once the purpose is no longer served (from May 2027) |
| Canteen washing places | No | Rule says "separate and screened to secure privacy" | r.53(ix) |
| Corridor outside locker room | Yes | Camera aimed along the corridor. Nothing past the door frame visible when the door opens | DPDP Act s.7(i) |
| Locker room interior | No | No camera, no "privacy mask" workaround | r.50(i)(e) privacy; IT Act s.66E; BNS s.77 |
| Changing room | No | No camera of any kind | r.51(iii); IT Act s.66E; BNS s.77 |
| Locker bank in an open aisle where nobody changes | Only if walled off from changing | Physical wall and door between aisle and changing area, posted "no changing here" rule, camera covers the aisle only | IT Act s.66E turns on a "reasonable expectation" of disrobing in private |
| Route to washrooms for women on night shift | Yes, on the way | CCTV "on the way to these facilities", never inside | OSH (Central) Rules 2026 r.83(d) for central-sphere establishments; your state's rules for a private factory |
Why the canteen and the locker room get opposite answers
The OSH Code 2020 s.24(1) requires "facilities of canteen" where 100 or more workers, including contract labourers, are ordinarily employed. The same sub-section requires "bathing places and locker rooms for male, female and transgender employees separately".
The two rooms have different purposes. A canteen is a shared space with a counter, a store and a cash point. A locker room is where clothing comes off.
Rule 53 of the OSH (Central) Rules 2026 describes the canteen as "a dining hall, kitchen, store room, pantry and washing places". It also reserves "a portion of the dining hall and service counter" for women employees and employees with disabilities. A camera on the counter therefore records women workers too, which is one more reason to frame the counter top and not faces.
Rule 51 requires "a separate changing room" with "individual lockers of adequate size". Rule 50 requires bathing places and locker facilities to be "capable of being secured from inside to secure privacy". A room the law tells you to make lockable from inside is a room where a camera defeats the purpose.
What the criminal law actually says
IT Act s.66E punishes whoever "intentionally or knowingly captures" the image of a private area of any person without consent, "under circumstances violating the privacy" of that person. The penalty is imprisonment up to three years, a fine up to ₹2 lakh, or both.
Section 66E defines "private area" by listed body parts that are "naked or undergarment clad". It defines "capture" as to "videotape, photograph, film or record by any means". A men's changing room is covered, because s.66E says "any person".
BNS s.77, in the Sanhita enacted on 25 Dec 2023, covers watching or capturing a woman "engaging in a private act". Explanation 1 says a private act includes being "covered only in underwear" or "using a lavatory". The punishment is 1–3 years on a first conviction and 3–7 years on a second, plus a fine.
Neither section has an exception for an employer's security purpose.
The DPDP layer for the cameras you can keep
From May 2027, when ss.3–17 of the Act commence under G.S.R. 843(E), DPDP Act s.7(i) lets an employer process personal data "for the purposes of employment or those related to safeguarding the employer from loss or liability". That is the ground for a counter or corridor camera, without collecting consent from each worker.
DPDP Act s.8(5) requires "reasonable security safeguards". The Schedule sets the penalty ceiling for that breach at ₹250 crore. DPDP Rules 2025 r.6 lists the minimum: access control, logs of who viewed the footage, and backups.
DPDP Act s.8(7) says data is to be erased once "the specified purpose is no longer being served". DPDP Rules r.6(1)(e) and r.8(3) separately ask for logs to be kept for one year. Set a written period for each camera; our retention guide sets out the triggers.
DPDP Rules 2025 r.1(4) brings rules 3 and 5 to 16 into force eighteen months after publication on 13 Nov 2025. Rule 3 governs the content of a notice that accompanies a consent request. A plain worker notice is still the safe practice: use the DPDP worker CCTV notice template.
The Supreme Court's nine-judge bench in Puttaswamy, on 24 Aug 2017, held privacy "an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21". The lead judgment sets a three-fold test: legality, need and proportionality. That judgment speaks to the State, but it is the yardstick for whether a camera is proportionate.
How to stop locker theft without a camera inside
- One camera on the locker-room entrance, from the corridor. It records who entered between, say, 14:05 and 14:20. In a theft inquiry, that time window is the evidence. The same principle drives our employee theft guide.
- Individual lockers that lock. Rule 51(v) asks for "individual lockers of adequate size". Give each worker a numbered locker, a hasp for their own padlock, and a register of locker numbers.
- Shift change in batches. Theft clusters when two shifts share the room. Stagger the locker-room slot by line, so the entrance clip shows few names per window.
- Valuables at the gate. Phones and cash in a counter-side deposit at security, which a gate camera can lawfully cover.
- Walled locker aisle, only if you are rebuilding. If lockers sit in an aisle with a full wall and door separating them from changing cubicles, and changing in the aisle is forbidden in writing, a camera on the aisle is defensible. If anyone could change there, it is not.
What breaks in a factory
- Wide lenses see through doors. A wide-angle corridor camera can catch the room behind a door when it swings open. Check the live view with the door fully open before you sign off.
- The canteen is often run by a contractor. Tell the contractor in writing what the store-room camera covers.
- Canteen committees notice. Rule 53(xv) gives the Canteen Managing Committee equal worker and employer representation. Tell the committee before you mount a camera in the canteen, not after.
- Old cameras in the wrong place. Many plants inherited a camera inside a locker room from a previous owner or integrator. Remove it and delete that channel's footage.
- Night shift. If women work night shifts, the Central Rules (r.83(d), central-sphere establishments) ask for CCTV on the way to toilets and washrooms, never inside. For a private factory your state's rules set the conditions; see which states require CCTV for women at night.
When to call the installer, and what to ask
Ask the installer for a field-of-view drawing of every camera within 3 m of a locker-room, changing-room or canteen washing-place door. Ask whether any camera has a motorised zoom that an operator could turn into the room. Ask your counsel only if you want a camera inside a walled locker aisle; everything else on this page follows the table.
Where Mama fits
Mama reads a factory's existing cameras over RTSP/ONVIF and sends the owner a short morning note on machine idle time and production flow. It counts aggregates, not individuals, and it does not need a lens in a canteen, locker room or changing room to do that job. To see where your current cameras could serve production, leave an email or phone in the form below.
FAQ
Can I install CCTV in a factory canteen in India? Yes, on the doors, the serving counter and the food store. We found no Indian statute banning a canteen camera (checked 15 Oct 2026). Keep the lens off the dining tables and the screened washing places, post a notice, and keep the footage only as long as the purpose needs.
Is CCTV allowed in a locker room or changing room? No. IT Act s.66E covers capturing the undergarment-clad body of any person without consent, with up to three years or a ₹2 lakh fine. BNS s.77 treats filming a woman covered only in underwear as voyeurism. Put the camera in the corridor outside instead.
Things keep going missing from lockers. What can I legally do? Use a corridor camera on the locker-room door, individually lockable numbered lockers with a register, staggered locker slots by line, and a valuables deposit at the gate.
Does blurring or a privacy mask make a locker-room camera legal? Do not rely on it. A mask is a software setting any admin can switch off or misalign, and once a private area is recorded s.66E applies. A lens in the room also defeats the r.50 rule that the room be secured "to secure privacy". Move the camera outside the door.