Need to Save Workers in Nuclear, Shipbreaking & Asbestos Industry

New Delhi : On International Commemoration Day  for Dead and Injured or Day of Mourning, ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA) remembers all the workers workers who got killed, disabled, injured or made unwell by their work in the nuclear, ship breaking and asbestos industry and appeals for legal remedy and justice for these workers.


Asbestos is banned in 55 countries. Nuclear power industry is being phased out in the post Fukushima world. The workers  condition in these two industries besides shipbreaking is among the worst in the industrial sector. TWA demands that asbestos should be phased out, non-nuclear sources of energy be adopted and shipbreaking industry be taken away from the Alang beach in the interest of workers environmental and occupational health rights.


TWA seeks a register of workers who work in the hazardous industries so that they can claim compensation for the occupational injuries and diseases they suffer. The recommendations contained in the minutes of the Interministerial committee is attached. These recommendations for safety measures for Alang Workers has been ignored.


The hazardous wastes/shipbreaking case Writ Petition (Civil) 657/1995 is coming up for hearing on May 3, 2012. An application has been filed in the Supreme Court has prayed for ban on end-of-life ships without prior decontamination in the country of export as per this Hon’ble Court’s order dated October 14, 2003 and an inquiry by an independent trans-disciplinary investigating agency to ascertain the circumstances of 'Oriental Nicety' (ex-Exxon Valdez), the dead US ship’s arrival in Indian territorial waters and to make concerned officials accountable for their acts of omission and commission and seek a detailed report on more than 1200 ships broken in last 5 years and more than 5924 ships broken since 1982 and for compliance with the recommendations of the Hon'ble Court constituted Inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on ship-breaking.


TWA demands provision of asbestos free housing facilities for workers of both the unorganised and organsied sector workers.  It demands the list of workers suffering occupational diseases for enabling the struggle for occupational and environmental health justice.