GRANITE QUARRY WORKERS (Occupational diseases)

Inche Abdul Aziz Karim asked the Minister for Health (a) how many granite quarry workers died from (i) silicosis; (ii) silico-tuberculosis; and (iii) other pulmonary diseases during the last ten years; (b) how many granite quarry workers are now suffering from these occupational diseases, and whether they are receiving treatment at Government hospitals; and (c) what steps his Ministry will take to acquaint medical practitioners that silicosis is an industrial disease notifiable under section 58 of the Factories Ordinance.

The Minister for Health (Mr Chua Sian Chin): Sir, the number of granite quarry workers who have died from silicosis and silico-tuberculosis over the last 10 years (that is, from January 1961 to 30th September, 1970) is eight by silicosis and 10 by silico-tuberculosis.

As for deaths from other pulmonary diseases, it is not medically known that silica dust could cause any other respiratory disease.

As for the number of granite quarry workers now suffering from these occupational diseases, this could only be estimated from the survey by the Ministry of Health's Committee of Inquiry into Occupational Diseases conducted in 1965. In that large survey, out of 1,188 granite quarry workers (constituting about 90 per cent of the total number of granite quarry workers in 1965) X-rayed, 364 or 30.64 per cent of them showed signs of silicosis. The survey, however, did not differentiate between cases of silicosis and cases of silico-tuberculosis. These cases have been followed up for treatment in the Tan Tock Seng Hospital. There are a smaller number of cases also being treated at the Outram Road General Hospital. It must be mentioned that there is no specific cure for silicosis, and the treatment available in hospitals is only for symptomatic treatment of the disease. The emphasis here should be the control of the dusty conditions in the granite quarries and thereby preventing the occurrence of the disease.

The Ministry of Health has circulated to all medical practitioners in Singapore a list of industrial diseases found in the Sixth Schedule of the Factories Ordinance, 1958, which include silicosis, drawing their attention to section 58 of the Factories Ordinance which requires them to notify these diseases to the Chief Inspector of Factories, Ministry of Labour, when they diagnose them.

Inche Abdul Aziz Karim (Kallang): Sir, can the Minister for Health inform this House who pays for the treatment -the employers or the state?

Mr Chua Sian Chin: Sir, that is a very general question. The question of who pays will depend on whether the workers' union has any collective agreement with the particular employer. I am afraid I cannot answer such a general question. If the Member will ask me a specific question, I shall he able to answer him.

Inche Abdul Aziz Karim: Sir, can the Minister inform this House when the list of industrial diseases was circulated to medical practitioners in Singapore? And why is it that up to June or July this year, only three cases were notified by medical practitioners to the Factory Inspectorate? Are the doctors so ignorant about this matter?

Mr Chua Sian Chin: Sir, the notification was circulated some time last month or the month before. As to why only three cases were notified, there again I am not able to answer. Perhaps the Member for Kallang should ask the medical practitioners for the answer.

Inche Abdul Aziz Karim: So the list of industrial diseases was circulated after the three cases were notified by medical practitioners to the Ministry of Labour. This is such a serious matter that the Ministry of Health took the trouble to circulate the list of industrial diseases to medical practitioners in Singapore.

Mr N. Govindasamy: Inche Abdul Aziz, your question is, why was the list circulated so late!

Inche Abdul Aziz Karim: Is there any explanation for it?

Mr Chua Sian Chin: Sir, there again it is a general question and needs no explanation.