COURTS and commissions have often been up in arms over the health and ecological hazards associated with stone-crushing. Yet concern fades with the headlines. The Lahore High Court, noting a shockingly high fatality rate among labourers exposed to crystalline silica dust, categorised Punjab’s unfettered stone-crushing industry as a “public-health and labour rights emergency”. In his scorching criticism, the judge observed that progress remains absent due to state negligence even as multiple workers perish without access to medical support. Some 150 patients of silicosis — a fatal lung ailment rampant in this sector — await death in D.G. Khan; 36 deaths occurred in just one factory in Gujranwala, and four petitioners in this litigation succumbed to the deadly disease. Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, 1997, stipulates that an initial environmental assessment or an environment impact examination must be submitted by the administrations of plants to the Punjab EPA before they become operational. The Punjab Labour Code, 2026, awaits approval by the provincial assembly.

The rot runs deep. Appalling occupational health and safety criteria result in not only eye and lung disorders but also prolonged suffering. The afflicted are left to find ways to sustain themselves and their families and pay for treatment. Such a grim situation should compel the government to ensure that rules and protective gear exist. Then there is the loss of earning ability, number of dependents and other factors in the WHO ‘disability-adjusted life years’ method — an aspect as vital as compensation for victims and accountability for cruel employers. Moreover, both the stone-crushing and mining workforce must be registered with the labour authorities for regular monitoring. Institutional apathy means preventable deaths and a productivity crisis. Crushing zones with safe labour conditions, including controlled-blasting, should be set up away from settlements. Unlike previously, for every worker trapped in hardship, the future must promise comfort.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2026