South Asia Citizens Web

Gas leak accident in LG Polymer Company – a South Korean company with its parent firm LG Chem – a chemical plant in Vishakhapatnam for making synthetic rubber and resin having claimed eleven lives till now and about two dozens of people on ventilators among several hundreds hospitalized once again brings forth the issues of occupational safety and health (OSH) not only for those who are at the work place but also for all those who happen to be living in the vicinity of such plants. It reminds us the Bhopal gas leak tragedy. The lessons have not been learnt from the previous accidents to ensure as continuous process of safety measures in industries. Among the deceased there are two girls aged 6 & 9 years and a young boy of 19 years and many sick are from the villages RR Venkatapuram, Venkatapuram, Padnabhapuram, Ashok Nagar, B C Colony, Banta Colony, in the vicinity of the company.

The writer Krishna Baldev Vaid (1927-2020) talking about his memories of living through Partition riots

On Monday May 4, a group of civil society organisations, activists, researchers and experts working with tribals and forest dwelling communities has submitted a report to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) about the socio-economic distress situation in tribal areas arising out of Covid19 outbreak and lockdown measures. The groups have demanded for urgent action by the ministry to ensure adequate awareness and healthcare and to protect the rights and livelihoods of the tribal communities.

We have been drawing your attention through our letters to you and also the Labour Minister to the plight of the working people - rural and urban, organized and unorganized sector, self employed, own account workers, gig economy and agricultural workers etc. who lost their ivelihood due to sudden lockdown. We have been raising the issues time and again that in crisis situation the buffer stocks of FCI be opened to feed all working masses universally without requirement of any cards/ documents. But from our ground reports even those who are the card holders of categories such as Antyodaya – BPL-APL, they are not covered fully. In our understanding enough is yet not accomplished for ration to reach everybody. We again urge you to please open the huge Anna Bhandaar available with FCI for all these people.

AITUC deplores the latest order from the Ministry of Home Affairs dated 3rd May stating that the government will facilitate the movement only of those stranded workers who had gone to work or from workplace to hometown just before lockdown but could not return to their native places/workplaces on account of restrictions placed on movement of persons and vehicles as part of lockdown measures.