Young workers under 25 face highest risk of occupational injuries: Study
Bengaluru: Workers below the age of 25 are at the highest risk of suffering from traumatic occupational injuries, often leading to severe financial hardship compounded by limited insurance coverage, according to a recent study.
The findings, as cited by Deccan Herald on Monday, were published in the Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and are based on data collected from 148 occupational injury cases over a six-month period. The data was gathered through hospital records and direct telephonic interviews with patients at a tertiary care hospital in Bengaluru.
The study sample primarily consisted of male workers, 144 out of 148, with an average age of 30.6 years. These individuals were employed across various labour-intensive and informal sectors such as construction, mining, transport, manufacturing, cleaning, and the garment industry. Their interviews revealed that individuals under 25 years are most vulnerable to workplace injuries.
Key contributors to these injuries included unsafe working environments and employee negligence. The study found that injuries commonly affected limbs, the head, and the eyes. While nearly 69% of respondents indicated that personal protective equipment (PPE) was available at their workplaces, only 51.4% reported consistent usage of the safety gear.
Financial distress emerged as a significant concern among those surveyed. Approximately 43% of the injured workers reported ‘catastrophic’ healthcare expenses. Meanwhile, only 36.5% were able to benefit from company credit coverage, and just 7.4% benefitted from the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Scheme.
The report, as cited by DH, mentioned the importance of targeted interventions to reduce the incidence of occupational injuries, especially in high-risk sectors. Recommendations included improving the distribution and usage of PPE through enforcement and worker training, expanding insurance coverage to alleviate financial strain, and enhancing awareness about existing social protection schemes.
Highlighting the broader scale of the issue, the study’s authors noted that India sees approximately 17 million non-fatal and 45,000 fatal occupational injuries each year. These findings underscore an urgent need for systemic changes in occupational safety, particularly for younger workers who are often at the frontline of hazardous, low-paid labour.
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SC to hear Mamata's plea against SIR on Wednesday; Bengal CM may attend proceedings
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court will hear on Wednesday a plea filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee challenging the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.
Banerjee may attend the apex court on Wednesday during the crucial hearing on a batch of petitions challenging the SIR of electoral rolls in her state.
According to the apex court website, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi is scheduled to hear the petitions, including those filed by Banerjee, Mostari Banu and TMC MPs Derek O'Brien and Dola Sen.
Sources say the chief minister, who has an LLB degree, may attend court and put forth her submissions. TMC sources too corroborated the claim, saying she is likely to attend the proceedings.
On January 19, the top court passed a slew of directions, observing that the SIR process in West Bengal should be transparent and not cause inconvenience.
It directed the Election Commission (EC) to display the names of those on the "logical discrepancies" list at gram panchayat bhavans and block offices, where documents and objections will also be submitted.
Logical discrepancies in progeny linking with the 2002 voter list include instances of a mismatch in the parent's name and the age difference between a voter and their parent being less than 15 years or more than 50 years.
Noting that 1.25 crore voters in the state figure on the "logical discrepancies" list, the CJI-led bench had directed that the offices for submitting documents and objections be set up within the panchayat bhavans or block offices and asked the West Bengal government to provide adequate manpower to the election authorities.
Banerjee had filed her petition on January 28. She has made the EC and the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer parties in the case.
The chief minister had earlier written to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), urging him to halt the "arbitrary and flawed" SIR in the poll-bound state.
Sharpening her attack on the EC, Banerjee had warned that continuation of the SIR in the present form could trigger "mass disenfranchisement" and "strike at the foundations of democracy".
In a strongly worded letter, dated January 3, to CEC Gyanesh Kumar, she accused the poll panel of presiding over an "unplanned, ill-prepared and ad hoc" process marked by "serious irregularities, procedural violations and administrative lapses".
Earlier, O'Brien had filed an application alleging arbitrariness and procedural irregularities in the SIR of electoral rolls in the state.
The application claimed that since the inception of the SIR process in the state, the EC has issued instructions to officers at the ground level through "informal and extra-statutory channels", such as WhatsApp messages and oral directions conveyed during video conferences, instead of issuing formal written instructions.
"The ECI cannot act arbitrarily, capriciously or dehors law, nor can it substitute legally prescribed and set procedures with ad hoc or informal mechanisms," it said.
O'Brien has filed the application in his pending petition, which has challenged the order and guidelines issued by the poll panel directing SIR in various states, including West Bengal.
The application said it was reported that in the course of SIR in West Bengal, the poll panel has created and deployed a new category described as "logical discrepancies" without any written order or guideline to "issue/decide to issue notices to 1.36 crore electors without any statutory basis".
It has also sought a direction to the poll panel to publish the final roll only after the disposal of all claims, objections and hearings.
