LAHOR E: Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has accorded approval to the draft legislation about occupational safety and health to secure the industrial workers who remain exposed to dust particularly silicon that causes a dangerous lungs disorder `silicosis` The draft law after its formal approval from the provincial cabinet will be placed before the Punjab Assembly without delay.
This was stated by Punjab Additional Chief Secretary Shamail Ahmad Khwaja while presiding over a meeting of subject core committee regarding directions of the Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan to prepare consensus implementation plan of the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to chalk out action plan regarding control, rescue and treatment of the victims of silicosis.
The committee reviewed the proposed action plan in detail and decided to send it to the Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan. The implementation status of this action plan includes introduction of new law on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH). According to the proposed law, mandatory health screening of the industrial workers of stone crushers, ceramics industry and marble grinding industry along with nomination ofcertined surgeons to treat the workers suffering from silicosis and another plan meant for capacitybuilding of labour inspectors at district level through an ADP Schemecame under discussion.
The meeting was also told that silicosis had been included in the checklist of occupational hazards.
Mr Khwaja directed provision of OSH kits to the inspecting staff of provincial Labour and Human Resource Department working in 18 districts of the province.
The PC-H for training programme of labour inspectors will be prepared by the Punjab Bureau of Statistics, while the data of mine workers will also be submitted to the Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan within a week.
The Labour Department has fixed a toll-free universal access number 0800-73774 to get registered any complaint regarding occupational hazards by the vulnerable industrial workers. The assistant chief secretary also directed the Information and Culture Department to launch awareness plan for safety from silicosis and said periodical media campaign would be launched in the days to come so that industrial workers would not unnecessarily be exposed to silicon dust causing silicosis.
Labour and Human Resource Department Secretary Sohail Shahzad, Mines and Minerals Department Additional Secretary Raja Khurram Shahzad, Environmental Protection Department Director General Dr Javed Iqbal, PESSI Commissioner Mansoor Qadir, Information and Culture Additional Secretary Syed Tahir Raza Hamdani and Additional Secretary Labour Muhammad Shakir participated in the meeting.
