In Rajasthan's Bhilwara, disease & death haunt this ‘village of widows’

The village of Shreeji Ka Kheda in Bhilwara district is known in the region by its eerie moniker-'village of widows'-because there is an unlikely abundance of widows here. The deadly lung disease of silicosis has been claiming lives in this village, for which the sandstone mines at nearby Bijolia remain the main source of income-and ill fate.For decades, the people of Shreeji Ka Kheda have been trapped in a vicious cycle of sickness and death. "Silicosis has devastated us, and it still does. Among the 100 families in our village, there are around 70 widows. Men who labour in the sandstone mines of Bijolia keep getting sick and dying of silicosis," said Babu Lal, 32, who lost both his father and brother to the disease.As yet another assembly poll comes, the villagers have this time made it a central election issue for casting their votes. "We have decided that each candidate, irrespective of political parties, will have to declare what their plans are to help us deal with continual sickness and frequent deaths," said Lal.While Shreeji Ka Kheda falls under Shahpura assembly constituency, the sandstone mines of Bijolia are in Mandalgarh constituency. Ram Gopal Sharma, the MLA of Mandalgarh, agreed that some safety measures should be implemented to stop mineworkers from getting silicosis.Santosh Kharod, 40 said her husband, Ram Kumar, worked in the mines for 15 years and died because of silicosis in 2015. She received a compensation of Rs 3 lakh and now works as an MNREGS worker to support her children.