60. (1) A conciliation proceeding shall be deemed to have commenced on the date on which the first meeting is held by the conciliation officer in an industrial dispute after the receipt of the notice of strike or lock-out by the conciliation officer.
(2) A conciliation proceeding shall be deemed to have concluded—
(a) where a settlement is arrived at, when a memorandum of the settlement is signed by the parties to the dispute;
(b) where no settlement is arrived at, and failure of conciliation is recorded by the conciliation officer; or
(c) when a reference is made to a National Industrial Tribunal, under this Code, during the pendency of conciliation proceedings.
(3) Proceedings before an arbitrator or a Tribunal or a National Industrial Tribunal under this Code shall be deemed to have commenced on the date of filing application or appeal or on the date of reference of the dispute for arbitration or adjudication, as the case may be, and such proceedings shall be deemed to have concluded on the date on which the award becomes enforceable.
61. There shall not be included in any report or award under this Code, any information obtained by a conciliation officer, arbitrator, Tribunal or National Industrial Tribunal, in the course of any investigation or inquiry as to a Trade Union or as to any individual business (whether carried on by a person, firm or company) which is not available otherwise than through the evidence given before such conciliation officer, arbitrator, Tribunal, or National Industrial Tribunal, if the Trade Union, person, firm or company, in question has made a request in writing to the conciliation officer, arbitrator, Tribunal or National Industrial Tribunal, as the case may be, that such information shall be treated as confidential; nor shall such conciliation officer, or the arbitrator, or the presiding officer of a Tribunal or a National Industrial Tribunal or any person present at or concerned in the proceedings disclose any such information without the consent in writing of the secretary of the Trade Union or the person, firm or company in question, as the case may be:
Provided that nothing contained in this section shall apply to a disclosure of any such information for the purposes of a prosecution under section 193 of the Indian Penal Code.