Under the statutory provisions of the Factories Act, 1948 (as amended by the Factories (Amendment) Act, 1987), who among the following must be designated as the Occupier of a factory owned by a corporate company?

Section 2(n) of the Factories Act, 1948 (Post-1987 Amendment): Section 2(n) defines an "Occupier" as the person who has ultimate control over the affairs of the factory. Following the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, the Factories (Amendment) Act, 1987 introduced stringent safety provisions and made a major legal revision to Section 2(n) to fix ultimate liability on top management. Proviso (i) to Section 2(n) explicitly mandates that in the case of a firm or company, only one of the directors of the company shall be deemed to be the occupier. Why Other Options Are Incorrect: Factory Manager / General Manager / HR Manager (Options A, B, & C): Prior to the 1987 Amendment, companies often nominated salaried employees (such as factory managers or general managers) as "occupiers" to shield board members from criminal liability. The 1987 Amendment closed this loophole by mandating that a Director must bear ultimate statutory responsibility. Chief Safety Officer (Option E): Holds functional responsibility for health and safety compliance under Section 40B, but cannot be legal "Occupier" under Section 2(n).