Gadani, no lesson learnt

The Gadani ship breaking yard once again in the news for wrong reasons. Yet another fire in the LNG container burnt alive 5 workers and many injured. This is the third serious incident at Gadani Ship breaking yard in less than three months. In November more than two dozen workers lost their lives and more than 70 got injured. Even after that fatal incident, it seems that nothing really changed at Gadani ship breaking yard.

All the tall claims of both federal and provincial governments to improve the safety of the workers never materialised. It is clear that workers are forced to work in dangerous conditions. It is also clear that international standards of occupational health and safety are not implemented and followed in the yard. The government departments failed to improve the situation and to implement the laws.

The government once again close the yard for fifteen days to improve the safety measures. The same thing was done after the November inferno but nothing really happens on the ground. Unfortunately the same officials which are responsible for the implementation of labour and safety laws in this ill fated yard seems more interested to fill their pockets from contractors for ignoring the violations of the safety standards and laws.

It seems that government officials are not really concerned about the loss of human lives. They have miserably failed to fulfill their duties and obligations. No ship breaking activity should be allowed until the government enforce international standards safety measures and proper training of the workers. The profits and money is not important then the human life. The workers lives are not cheap as some contractors and local government officials might think. The government should strictly implement the safety measures and all steps must be taken before the resumption of ship breaking at Gadani. The work places should remain work places instead of becoming death chambers for workers.