More than 48,000 cases of lung injuries from prolonged inhalation of silica have been reported in this northern Indian state in recent years. The local government established compensation plans for the families. However, many difficulties remain, especially related to the widespread presence of illegal mines.
Milan () – They call it “the village of widows” because there live at least 40 women who lost their husbands to silicosis after working a lifetime in the mines. And now, in order to continue supporting the family, their children are forced to take the place of their parents. Gandero ki Dhanni, in the Indian state of Rajasthan, is part of a group of towns located in a sandstone mining belt. Between 2018 and January 2023, 11,462 cases of silicosis were recorded in Jodhpur district alone, while statewide, official figures record at least 48,448 cases.
Known as “Patthar ki bimari”, the stone disease, silicosis attacks the lungs due to exposure to silica dust: the crystals, inhaled over a long period, cause small wounds that in most cases lead to a premature death, often before the age of 40. The situation has long been known in India, to the point that in 2019 Rajasthan introduced a “pneumoconiosis policy” (a term that encompasses all lung diseases caused by the inhalation of noxious dust) in order to register mines, treat sick workers and compensate families who lost a relative to silicosis.
Rajasthan is the Indian state with the largest number of mining leases, with more than 33,000 licences, the majority for sandstone extraction. But as of 2014, it was estimated that there were at least 12,000 illegal mines in and around Jodhpur alone. These are not under government control and do not apply any protection mechanism for workers. Some may be quarries as small as 30 by 60 meters and employ five to eight people, earning Rs 30-50 a day (men) or Rs 15-30 a day (women). In both cases, it is about a few euro cents.
Since 2019, the state government grants an amount of 300 thousand rupees (less than 3,400 euros) to silicosis patients and another 200 thousand (2,260 euros) to the family in case of death, while widows receive a disability pension of 1,500 rupees (17 euros) per month. To obtain the benefits granted by the State, it is necessary to present a medical certificate proving the disease. But not everyone manages to obtain it: in some cases, working in the mines wears down the fingertips so that fingerprints can no longer be collected and, therefore, it is not possible to prove identity. Those who have received it say it is still too low. Or many times the workers are not even aware of the plans proposed by the government. For this reason, even the children of the miners, aware of the risks, decide to follow in the footsteps of their parents, hoping that their younger siblings can continue their studies.
Many times these are children as young as 11 who miss class or go to the mine in the afternoons after school and for whom no data or statistics are found. “The police are hardly informed about this matter,” he told IndiaSpend Priyank Kanoongo, President of the National Commission for the Protection of Children’s Rights. “Foreign companies want their products to be free of child labor, but no industry here wants to be controlled.” Estimates by the non-profit organization Mine Labor Protection Camp Trust indicate that there are at least 375,000 child laborers in mines across Rajasthan, with twice the number of girls than boys.
The efforts of the local authorities continue: for example, before the end of the month they will organize educational camps on silicosis across Rajasthan. But at the same time problems persist, above all due to the presence of illegal mining, which even state officials acknowledge is widespread. Rehabilitation and financial aid are also offered to workers coming from other Indian states, for example; Nevertheless, as usualmine owners do not legally hire or recognize them as employees, and workers are not entitled to any type of compensation when they contract silicosis.
