The recent disaster in Sivakasi is not an exception. Not a single year passes without similar disasters in the cracker-village called Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu. Right now there are about 3000 living martyrs in and around Sivakasi who inherited burn injuries from the disasters and were rendered impotent for living normal life. The hundreds who sacrificed their lives to the industry and the delight it gives to Diwali-celebrating Indians as well as the profit-reaping industrialists are always forgotten history. The crackers industry makes an annual turnover of about Rs800-1000 crore. But the worker in the industry gets a daily wage of Rs100 to Rs200. The industry employs about 40,000 workers directly and 100,000 indirectly (ancillary jobs that cater to the needs of the labourers). Two questions arise. 1. Is the industry required at all? 2. How to find alternative employment for the workers who depend on the industry? The second question is not likely to
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