Workers face constant threat of mishaps, injuries at Mumbai Shipbreaking yard:

MUMBAI: At the shipbreaking plots in Lakri Bunder, on Mumbai's eastern coast, there is only sporadic evidence of the worker safety and protection mechanisms specified in national and International Labour Organization guidelines. Since April 1, 2010, there have been 10 accidents at the Darukhana shipbreaking yards, resulting eight injuries and five deaths. But many fires and accidents in the area go unnoticed.

Workers among scrapped toxic materials in the Mumbai shipbreaking yard

Gas-cutter Omprakash Chauhan, 35, dismally points to the ordinary shoes of workers crowded around to make a point. Protective boots are only occasionally spotted, as are safety helmets. "Since we work with scrap iron sheets, protective shoes are important. A falling sheet could cost someone his feet, but we are not given any shoes and can't afford to buy them on our own," said Chauhan.

Fire-related accidents and work-related injuries are a common reality for these workers. Three workers were killed and six more grievously injured when a petrol-related fire broke out during ship-breaking at Powder Works Bunder in February. "The fire left my nephew Narayan Swai with grievous burn injuries. He has gone back to his village in Orissa and has been bed-ridden at home ever since," said his relative Ravindre. Others point out that few plots have basic drinking water facilities, even in the current scorching heat.

Vidhyadhar Rane, secretary of the Mumbai Port Trust, Dock and General Employees' Union said rules are routinely flouted. He pointed out, for instance, the prevalence of overlapping activity, in which workers are made to work on two levels of a ship simultaneously, increasing the risk of accidents.

Pratap Bohra, of the Ship-breakers' Association, acknowledged that worker safety is a concern, but added that employers usually gave workers protective equipment. Many workers are hesitant to use it, he said. "It could be due to their lack of awareness about worker safety or the fact that they aren't used to such gear," Bohra added. He said the association is concerned about workers and has been requesting port authorities for space where they can conduct safety programmes.

Source: The Times of India. By Madhavi Rajadhyaksha, TNN | 4 June 2011

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