GM strike: Govt docs to examine protesting workers

The protest,which is supposedly the first in the country where workers have alleged serious spine-related disorders due to excessive workload,is now concentrated on the medical reports.

Officials at the Vadodara office of the Industrial Safety and Health told The Indian Express that even if the reports say that the workers were suffering from spinal problems,the department would not be able to do anything. “We have received reports from private practitioner Dr Mrugank Merchant,in which it is mentioned that the workers were suffering from spine related problems. But it cannot be said that it is due to the work at the factory. We would now send the employees to the Jamnabai General Hospital in Vadodara where doctors would conduct the tests. (Based on the reports) We would decided what to do in the case,” said P M Shah,joint director,Industrial Safety and Health.

Dr Mrugank Merchant,chairman of the Shubhechha Hospital where the earlier tests were carried out,said: “There were no evident signs of injury which could have happened while carrying weight. There is a difference between spine-related injuries which have happened in the near future and the ones which are normally seen in most of the people. During my investigation of eight-odd patients who were from General Motors,I realised that they were not taking proper diet. None of them was doing exercise or yoga,and most of them were driving two-wheelers. So these things cause back pain even in the routine course of life. Moreover,it is difficult to believe that there can be an outbreak of spine injuries.”

However,Gujarat Kamdar Mandal general secretary Nihil Mehta said it was “not possible” for a doctor to arrive at a conclusion whether the injury took place at workplace or due to some other reason. “We have taken a strong objection against the Industrial Safety Department officials for sending the medical reports to GMI doctors and not giving the same to the workers when demanded,” he added.