Four hundred sixteen sand stone quarry workers of Jodhpur district were screened for prevalence of silicosis and pulmonary tuberculosis to estimate magnitude of the problem in this region.
Prevalence of both conditions increased with duration of work.
Examination of sputum smear of subjects with symptoms of tuberculosis revealed 3.6 percent prevalence of bacteriologically confirmed cases of tuberculosis.
Minimum concentration of respirable quartz was 8893 micron/m to the power of 3 in air samples collected from breathing zone of quarry workers, while WHO suggests a safe upper limit of 40 microns/m to the power of 3.
This has been reported in a paper published in Annals of the National Academy of MedicalSciences (India), June 1996 by one Dr Murli Lal Mathur, Desert Medicine Research Centre (ICMR), Jodhpur.
Silica dust exposure and its pathogenesis in induction of silicosis, silico-tuberculosis and cancer in man is a recent concept say Dr S K Nigam and Dr H N Saiyed of National Institute of Occupational Health, Ahmedabad in a paper published in Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, July-September, 2001.
Earlier in September 16, 2000 Indian Express had reported how the trauma centre at the Sir Sayajirao General Hospital saw some 25 silicosis patients from Chhotaudepur taluka brought for a diagnostic check-up, conducted by the National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH), Ahmedabad. The check-up was ordered by the Gujarat High Court after hearing a public interest litigation by Vikalp, a voluntary organisation of Vadodara.
More than 300 people from 14 villages in the taluka were feared suffering from the disease: all of them work in quartz-crushing factories of Godhra. Katya Kinnar, another patient, of Bharkunda village had said: "`I have been suffering from the disease for over one year now and the doctor there treated me for tuberculosis. After so long, I don't think I can live any more."
These workers have on average been working for 12 hours daily for a paltry wage of Rs 150-200 per month. Among the sufferers are women, who sieve the crushed material and fill them in bags. The silica produced after crushing quartz is used for manufacturing glass.
Life comes to a standstill for those who suffer from the disease. There is not much hope for the sufferers as silicosis is incurable. An expert from NIOH, Dr Y K Sharma had said, "This is a non-contagious disease, but it is incurable. Adequate prevention should be taken by the workers."
In 2000 a team of five from NIOH was constituted which comprised of a radiologist, a clinical expert, a pulmonary physiologist and two others for technical support to study the situation, no one knows as to what the team reported.
Now that in 2004 Silicosis cases have once again emerged, in all liklihood a team would again be consituted...and workers will continue to work in a condition which leads to their slow and painful death.
Eight stone-crushing unit workers get tuberculosis
August 2004
Vadodara, August 30: Eight workers of a stone crushing unit on Godhra-Ahmedabad Road were found to be suffering from tuberculosis. Thirteen tribal workers of Badri Stone Mill were admitted to the Dahod Civil Hospital with acute respiratory symptoms. All the 13 had been referred to the SSG Hospital here for further investigation.
‘‘Thirteen workers of Badri Stone Mill were admitted here with symptoms like chest pain, cough and dyspnoea. The ones suffering from tuberculosis are chronic patients and had been receiving treatment under the DOTS programme from Jhalol Community Health Centre,’’ said Amit Shukla, a physician at the Dahod Civil Hospital.
Apparently the patients are being referred to the SSG Hospital for confirmation of what illness they are suffering from and how it occurred. They might be suffering from silicosis, caused due to prevailing working conditions at stone crushing factories, is also under consideration by physicians.
‘‘The ones suffering from tuberculosis were undergoing treatment for the same. But doubts about the nature of their ailment arises from the fact that even after receiving treatment for tuberculosis, these eight are also showing signs like the other five,’’ said the Resident Medical Officer of the Dahod Civil Hospital.
‘‘We had observed that incidence rate of workers suffering from silicosis, in the 20-30 stone crushing units in Godhra, is very high. Proper details could only be availed after a visit to the unit, may be there are more workers with similar respiratory symptoms but not in such acute state yet. The district health officials to take note of this,’’ said an occupational health hazard expert, Jagdish Patel.
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