There’s death in the air here: in a village in Rajasthan, silicosis caused by sand mining has reached epidemic-like levels
Khemchand Yadav, 70, and Phoru Lal, 55, are neighbours in Dabi village in Rajasthan’s Bundi district. They have similar physical attributes — eyes like bottomless pits set in hollow cheeks and bones sticking out from frail bodies. They cough and draw deep breaths when they talk. They both suffer from silicosis, the fatal respiratory disease.
For most men in this region, and in the neighbouring districts of Kota and Bhilwara, silicosis killed their fathers and they know it will kill their sons. And despite the 7th Asian Mining Congress held last month in Kolkata, where the head of the Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) admitted that silicosis was a “concern”, nothing looks likely to change soon.
Courtesy: The Hindu