In a bid to stop and eliminate Silicosis, which is an occupation-related lung disease Bokaro Deputy Commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray directed the district mining officer to conduct awareness drive among the miners and stone cursher workers.
Rai also asked the officials to immediately constitute a health check-up team for the periodic check-ups of the workers. DC also asked them to submit a report about the health status of the workers which will be later forwarded to the higher authorities.
Silicosis is a lung disease that is caused by inhaling silica dust. Overexposure to dust containing crystalline silica has caused disease and health problems in workers, said Dr Randhir.
Workers involved in sandblasting, stone cutting, road works are at risk as they are exposed to silica for a long time. This could lead to deposition of silica dust in the lungs, and, continuous exposure puts these workers at high risk of tuberculosis, fungal infections and chronic bronchitis, said an official of district health department.
Organised sector workers have access to medical facilities while in the unorganised sector workers lack such facilities. Normally this disease is not being identified and most cases of it are still being counted as tuberculosis. The silicosis renders the respiratory system vulnerable to infection, which in turn becomes the terminal disease. The seriousness of it is that the mean age death due to silicosis is 35 years in India, said the official. About 10 million workers are exposed to Silicosis in India. According to a WHO report, about 55 per cent people were found of suffering silicosis in a group of workers, he said.
Initial exposure to silica dust caused irritation of the eyes, nose and throat like most other dusts. However, if excessive amounts of silica dust are breathed into the lungs over a period of time, it can cause damage to the lung tissue, said Dr lalan.