Occupational Disease, its Recognition and Classification: The Story of an Indian Coalfield, 1946-1971

Abstract

Workers employed in the Raniganj coalfield, India, were plagued by occupational diseases, a problem that exacerbated over time. However, the recognising and categorising these diseases, and the injury it caused to mineworkers, were a belated and gradual process. The issue remained under dispute from 1946 to 1971, between contending stakeholders. The postcolonial public authority began to take cognisance of this problem in the early 1950s, declaring it a compensable casualty source in 1959. A combination of reasons — new medical knowledge about occupational diseases, the medical experts’ and labour unions’ documentation, the publicisation of occupational diseases like pneumoconiosis, and the national state's concerns about a healthy and efficient industrial population — shaped the twin initiatives for its official recognition, and protective legislative measures. Nonetheless, delayed official recognition, and persistent managerial prevarication practically diminished and distorted the protection and rehabilitation of afflicted mineworkers. Instead, colliery management preferred to get rid of afflicted mineworkers, by offering a small lump sum to recalcitrant victims, and coercing them into retirement. Mineworkers with impaired lungs placed a premium on continuing their employment, despite reduced working capacity, and undertaking quotidian negotiation. The gap between protective laws and abysmally low investment in medical support emerged as a new fractious issue, confronting a significant section of working peoples. Methodologically, this study draws upon archival materials and testimonies as oral histories.