Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders among Stone Polishing Workers u sing Stone Polishing Devices in Unorganized Sector of Guwahati India

Abstract

Stone polishing is one of the prominent informal sector in India (and world as well), where a large number of stone polisher works for long duration. Stone polishing workers manually operate the polishing machine either in standing or sitting position to carry out polishing activities, and are quite prone to various MSDs (repetitive strain induced) and thereby injuries and accidents. The present research therefore intends to explore the occurrences of WMSDs among the stone-polishing workers, and with utmost attempt to put forward some recommendations regarding corrective measures. Thirty (30) male stone polishing workers were selected from the Guwahati city of Assam. A comprehensive study on discomfort feeling was carried out by the modified Nordic questionnaire which considered the information about work nature and job stress. Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) method was followed to evaluate whole body postural load and risks associated with the job. The finding of the study contributes to the understanding of the working conditions of the stone polishing workers and their physical discomforts at various body parts (mainly the lower back, knees and shoulder) due to awkward posture, repetitive motion, force exertion and sustained load handling during polishing activities. To overcome the problem arisen from aforesaid ergonomic stressors associated with stone-polishing work, ergonomic design intervention pertaining to modification of the equipment / hand tool like handle design, easy manoeuvrability, avoiding hand-holding of weight etc. have been proposed