Agriculture Industry / Sugar Industry

Agriculture industry Nirwanchak

Agro-Industry/Sugar Industry

Contents

Agriculture

  • 2735 million people in the world are engaged in farming.
  • 10 % in developed countries & 60 % developing countries.
  • ILO estimates: from a total of 335,000 fatal workplace accidents worldwide, 170,000 agricultural workers are killed each year.
  • Farming employs men and women, young & old.
  • The human effort provides for 70% of the energy required for crop production in developing countries.Nirwanchak, nirmanchak
  • Engaged in daily wages.
  • Workload per person is high. Severe for children.
  • Education level is low.
  • Long hours of work resulting in fatigue.
  • Physical stress is increased by heat & relative humidity. Frequent water consumption & rest breaks avoid beat stress.
  • Risk of sprains & traumatic injuries due to repetitive labor intensive work.
  • Direct poisoning can occur by direct contact with Pesticide spray of application equipment.

Agriculture Harvesting

  • Harvesting is done mostly manually with sickles.
  • Lacerations and incised wounds are common in rice and sugarcane fields.
  • Lifting heavy loads.
  • Long hours of exposure.
  • Repetitive motion and awkward or stooped posture (Bending requires 18% more energy then squatting)
  • Poisonous insects & snakes.
  • Livestock-related hazards where animal-drawn reapers are used.
  • Tractors, machinery & grain handling equipment.
  • Risk of fire during drying/ storage.
  • Threshing includes separation of grains from the ear heads.
  • This includes rubbing the ear heads with one’s feet, beating of the harvested crop on a plank, animal treading.
  • Medium-heavy Work.
  • Pedal threshing work is more strenuous then manual threshing.
  • Results in muscular strain.Nirwancham, nirmanchak, lochna
  • Winnowing is a process to separate grains from the chaff by blowing air, using a hand tan or a pedal or motor-driven fan.
  • Decorticating involves breaking of shells and removal of seeds (groundnut, castor beans). Bodily discomfort due to continuous sitting or squatting posture.

Agro-Industry Cotton

  • When the crop is ready, it is plucked in the morning between 5 am to 9:30/10 am. After that, it is not very congenial time.
  • Cotton is stored at the house and thereafter sells it.
  • Transportation is by trucks, tractors, bullock carts.
  • Cotton upper: It is like a blower. It removes stones, earth and other foreign particles.
  • Gin: Single and double roller type gins are there. This process removes the seeds.
  • Gins are in groups of 40, 60 and 80, 100 in factories.
  • Press: the cotton is then pressed into bales of 1 ton in a 200 tons hydraulic press.

Accident prone Zone: Fire

  • Cotton is stored in open compounds. Risk of fire by biddies or cigarettes.
  • Friction in gin.
  • Crackers or other volatile materials stored near cotton.
  • Electrical short circuit.
  • Bearings of the machine are running hot and dry without oil.
  • Cotton fluff accumulated on electric wiring, walls, and roof.
  • Bursting of pipes due to overpressure in the hydraulic system.

Control Measures

  • Install water sprinkles all around the u n and press and in the compound.
  • To provide fire extinguishers.
  • To check loose connections in electrical installation to prevent sparks.
  • Clean cotton fluff on a weekly basis.
  • All motors should be totally enclosed type.
  • Prohibit smoking inside the premises.
  • Preventive maintenance of the hydraulic system of press to avoid pipe bursting.

Agro-industry Sugar

  • Sugar cane is brought to the factory by truck tractors or bullock carts.
  • It is unloaded in the hopper of the crane carrier.
  • The cane is cut by rotating blades into a fibrous form.
  • It moves on conveyors to the mill.
  • It is crushed between grooved rollers to remove juice.
  • Juice is pumped to a big drum having vacuumed inside and felt fitted from outside, Juice is sucked and mud is separated, while the drum is rotating through the trough which contains juice.
  • Flakes of mud are separated from outside and further used as manure.
  • Juice is pumped to juice heater. It is beaten by steam at 20 to 15 psi and pumped to a vessel called quadruple the juice becomes thick.
  • It is pumped to a crystallizer where molasses and sugar are separated.
  • The thick product is dropped in the centrifugal basket where it rotates at very high speed. Moisture is totally removed and the sugar is dropped on vibrating screens.
  • Different grades of sugar are separated on the screen directly filled in gunny bags.
  • The bags are stitched and conveyed to the warehouse from where it is distributed.

Accident Hazards

  • Cane carrier: Fencing from all sides. No one should stand under raised sugar cane by crane.
  • Crushing rollers: Proper guarding, insulation, foundation, isolation from other areas
  • Electrical Hazards: Proper earthing & maintenance of electrical equipment.
  • Fire in bagasse area: No smoking, Fire hydrants.
  • Bagassosis: Good ventilation, respirators, air monitoring.

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