Sandstone mining and silicosis deaths in Rajasthan: a critical legal and policy analysis
International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare
ISSN: 2056-4902
Article publication date: 27 November 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The extant literature underlines the inadequacies of legal and policy frameworks addressing the safety and health concerns of sandstone mineworkers in India. Notably, Rajasthan, a state renowned for its extractive industries, mirrors these concerns. Against this backdrop, this paper aims to critically evaluate the relevant legal and policy landscape, with an emphasis on the recent central statute: the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code of 2020 (OSHWCC). Given that the Code subsumes the key legislation pertaining to the safety and health of mineworkers, an in-depth critical analysis is essential to forge suitable policy interventions to address continued gross violations of human rights.
Design/methodology/approach
The critical analysis of legal and policy frameworks on silicosis in sandstone mineworkers is based on a comprehensive reading of existing literature. The literature includes relevant laws, case law, reports of the Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission and National Human Rights Commission, publicly available data and key scholarly contributions in the field.
Findings
Although the OSHWCC has made some changes to the existing regulatory architecture of mines in India, it has failed to safeguard the safety and health of mineworkers. Notably, the vast majority of mines in India – constituting approximately 90%, which are informal, seasonal and small-scale – remain beyond the jurisdiction of this Code. In Rajasthan, there are specific policies on silicosis, but these policies are poorly implemented. There is a serious shortage of doctors to diagnose silicosis cases, leading to under-diagnosis. The compensation for silicosis victims is insufficient; the distribution mechanism is complex and often delayed.
Research limitations/implications
The central and many state governments have not established the regulatory institutions envisaged under the OSHWCC 2020; therefore, the working of the regulatory institutions could not be critically examined.
Originality/value
The paper critically evaluates laws and policies pertaining to silicosis in sandstone mineworkers, with a special emphasis on the state of Rajasthan. It offers a comprehensive critique of the OSHWCC of 2020, which has not received much attention from previous studies.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the roles of Dr M.K. Devarajan, Former Member, Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission and Prof (Dr) Girish Agrawal, IIT, Delhi, for reviewing the manuscript. Ms Sabeela Siddiqui, Assistant Lecturer at the Jindal School of Government and Policy, O.P. Jindal Global University, contributed in enriching the article.
Since submission of this article, the following author has updated their affiliation: Shamim Mohammad is at the Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Health Sciences and Technology, Dr Vishwanath Karad MIT World Peace University, Pune, India.
Citation
Mohammad, S., Huchhanavar, S., Rahman, H. and Pasha, T.S. (2023), "Sandstone mining and silicosis deaths in Rajasthan: a critical legal and policy analysis", International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJHRH-05-2023-0037
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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