Assessment and redressal of work related risk factors among women involved in vegetable harvesting
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Date
2021
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Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana
Abstract
The present study entitled “Assessment and Redressal of Work Related Risk Factors among
Women Involved in Vegetable Harvesting”, was conducted with an aim to assess the
musculoskeletal disorders faced by farm women in performing vegetable harvesting; to assess
physiological cost of performing the activity and to redress drudgery of farm women involved
in vegetable harvesting by designing and evaluating a suitable intervention. The study was
conducted in two parts i.e. field survey and field experiment. For conducting the field survey,
a total of 150 women in the age group of 20-50 years were purposively selected from
Hoshiarpur district of Punjab. For conducting the field experiments, a smaller sample of 30
subjects were selected purposively out of the total sample of field survey. The data were
collected with the help of pre-tested interview schedule, self-designed scales and low cost
ergonomic tools. Results revealed that the subjects felt severe pain in right hand (mean score
3.81), left hand (mean score 3.7) and fingers (mean score 3.51) followed by pain in shoulder,
lower back, neck and upper back regions during harvesting of peas. Postural analysis using
WERA, REBA and QEC indicated that subjects were working in poor posture with high risk
of injury. However, the physiological cost of performing the activity was within permissible
limits. Therefore, on the basis of results of field survey and field experiment, a peas
harvesting bag was designed and tested, and vegetable harvesting cutter was tested to assess
its effectiveness in harvesting of peas on 30 selected subjects. The findings further revealed
that working with interventional tools reduced overall pain in different body parts of the
subjects from severe to moderate and low pain. Results of objective assessment scales like
WERA, REBA and QEC revealed that the risk in different body parts was reduced
significantly with the use of interventional tools. Results of muscular stress revealed that the
use of designed tool and improved practices help in reducing the discomfort in muscles of
hands and fingers. Subjects were satisfied and comfortable with the intervention and work
output was also increased.
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Citation
Sujata Kumari (2021). Assessment and redressal of work related risk factors among women involved in vegetable harvesting (Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation). Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India.