KOCHI: Call it lack of awareness or lax enforcement by the authorities concerned, many construction sites in the state do not follow the 12 pm to 3 pm break despite directive from the Labour Commission that workers should not be exposed to the sun during the three hours due to rising mercury levels.
As per the directive of the State Labour Commission, effective from February 11 to April 30, the working hours of labourers within the state have been rescheduled, prohibiting them from working under the sun during the 12-3:00 pm period. TNIE visited several worksites and found that the Labour Commission’s directive were being openly flouted, with workers toiling under the baking sun during the ban hours.
“If we work for eight hours in a day, the payment we receive is `1,500 and it gets reduced if we work lesser number of hours. No one has given us any such directive. Whenever our boss or engineer tells us to work, we work to get our daily pay,” said Kishore Singh, employed at a construction site in Kaloor.
Health Dept’s warning against sunstroke
With many parts of the state witnessing soaring temperatures, the Health department has directed the public to remain cautious against sunstroke. The advisory issued in this regard warns the public not to have prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. P4