Micro and small-scale units plan to step up awareness on industrial safety measures following the death of a 27-year-old micro unit owner on Sunday evening because of an electrical accident at his unit.
According to J. James, president of the Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Tiny Enterprises, the unit owner had completed Navarathri pujas at the unit and had accidentally touched a live wire. There was a similar accident seven or eight years ago and the unit owner died in an electrical accident. The workers at micro units may not notice while cleaning the machinery wires that were unprotected. There was certainly a need to improve awareness among the micro and cottage units on electrical safety. “We plan to take up measures regarding this,” he said.
B. Karthigaivasan, General Manager of District Industries Centre, said micro units normally did not come under the focus of the government for industrial safety measures. The government had taken a lot of steps to encourage units to go in for energy audits. A similar campaign could be taken up among micro and small units on industrial safety, he said.
C. Sivakumar, president of Coimbatore and Tiruppur District Tiny and Micro Enterprises Assocaition, said 90 % of these units functioned out of rented buildings. Earthing and wiring were important and the unit owners may not be aware of how strong these two were in the buildings. Several accidents could be prevented with proper earthing. “We keep telling the units that they need to focus on these two,” he said.
Mr. James added that the Association would work with the DIC to create awareness among the units on electrical safety.
