Donate Rs 500 to Protect Brick Kiln Workers in UP from Heat Strokes and Dehydration

Munni (55) has spent the majority of her life working with bricks. She can tell a good brick from a fragile one. Despite the backbreaking job that brick-making is, Munni gets paid Rs 4 per brick. And God forbid a brick breaks or slumps because it hasn’t quite dried enough, Munni loses out on her wage. She lives alone, and so hers is a solo hustle. “On days that I am not well, I cannot work and so don’t get paid,” she shares. Munni must go hungry on those days. As a daily wage labourer, she is no stranger to eking out a living and doesn’t complain. 

Does she get to rest during the day? 

She does after lunch. 

And how does she spend her breaks? “There is a tap half a kilometre away. I walk to that point so I can drink some water. I get very thirsty after my work. It is hard work,” she shares. 

Munni’s admission underscores the reality of the thousands of brick kiln workers across Uttar Pradesh — according to reports, the state is an epicentre of kilns and houses around 22,500 brick kilns. Here, the living arrangements are poor; most of these labourers are put up in makeshift shanties for the duration of the project. But while they have made their peace with it, they are still grappling with the changes posed by global warming. 

Torrential rains and heatwaves have been playing spoilsport, disrupting their work, posing problems to their survival. The labourers need something to tide them through the summer. While a heatwave grips Uttar Pradesh, the brick kiln workers are looking for an antidote. And they could use your help. 

Donate a summer kit to help brick kiln workers 

The labourers’ attitude towards summer is paradoxical; they hate it for its heat, but it is during this season that they earn the most, as the scorching heat dries the bricks quickly. 

Take, for instance, Baba ji. He is 70 years old, but he hasn’t taken a single day's leave in his life. “The days I don't work, I go hungry,” he says. Baba ji dreads the summer; its effects are evident in the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet. The heavy work of slapping clay into the mould, bearing the brunt of bricks on his head and fuelling the kilns with coal takes a toll on him. 

Signs of dehydration are seeping out of his eyes. And, his energy suggests he hasn’t eaten well in days. 

The summer kit we intend to distribute with the help of the on-ground effort of BDRF (Bharat Disaster Relief Foundation) will include a protein-rich flour sattu (made of roasted Bengal gram), ORS (oral rehydration solution rich in electrolytes that can supplement the energy they lose through sweat), glucose powder, slippers that will help them brave the scorching ground, and an umbrella under which they can find some shade while they wait for the bricks to dry.

Each kit costs Rs 500. Your contribution could give a labourer food, water, rest, and a little dignity in the blazing heat.

Dust and clay fly around the kiln; it’s a modern-day inferno. Most of the labourers are concentrated in Uttar Pradesh; they hail from Chhattisgarh, Bihar, and Jharkhand. The reason for the mushrooming of kilns in Uttar Pradesh is its fertile alluvial soil, which makes it conducive for brick making. These labourers are joined by their children, who are deprived of education; the nomadic nature of the job makes it impossible for them to keep switching schools. 

Take, for instance, Asha. Her children have never known what school is. This world of clay and dust is the only one they know. “My children have never studied. They watch how I’m making bricks. When they grow up, they will also make bricks. This is our life and work.” 

The summer heat is going to worsen. The sweat beads that trickle down the labourers’ faces are a case in point. But maybe this year, your donation could be the respite they need in the form of rations that will help them get them through the heat.