Musculoskeletal Pain and Postural Discomfort Experienced by Marble Cutting Workers

Marble are rock formations formed by nature. These are formed naturally by

enormous pressure under the earth. Marbles are used in decorating and

sculpturing from the moment civilization was born. These are time tested for

their natural beauty. Ancient buildings and monuments made of natural stones

during early civilization still stand erect narrating the beauty and durability of

natural stones. Modern people want to make their home stand out of the rest

and they used natural stones for their floors and walls to bring about eternal

beauty.

Building constructions using marble was popular in India too and the Taj

Mahal one of the seven Wonders of the World was constructed using pure

white marble stones. This uniqueness of natural stones has made people

want for more use of natural stones. In the ancient periods, marble and

granite were used for lining and decoration. The natural stone flooring was

used in the various rooms of the house except for in Bathrooms.

A drastic change in marble scenario during half century of independence

has generated job opportunities manifold. A large number of persons are

engaged in marble mining and marble based industries.

Despite of the technological development for lifting bulky marbles and

cutting them, the role of a human being cannot be denied. The findings

of the pilot study conducted by the researcher at Kishangarh tehsil,

Ajmer district, Rajasthan found that the laborer is required at every step

of marble production maintaining different postures and standing for long

period of time. The marble cutting machine on which the small slabs are

cut into the required shape for making tiles requires the worker to adjust

the marble on the machine and hold it till the blade cuts the marble

through. The marble cutting activities are performed by the worker

throughout his shift of 8 hours including a rest break for 1 hour. The

marble pieces that are cut for residential areas are carried manually by

the worker from the marble cutting machine to the store house.

Sometimes these slabs weigh from 25 kg to 75 kg. The investigator was

interested to find out whether such practices have an impact on MSD

and on Posture, thus this study was framed.