Standing waist-deep in water containing a dangerous cocktail of chemicals, a group of workers toil round-the-clock to wash and dry beautiful, ethnic hand-block printed fabric.
This is the scene in almost every textile unit in Sanganer, a town on the outskirts of Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan.
Only a few such factories remain in the town now, as most others have moved to Bagru, also in the same district, or elsewhere, following a High Court order last year. The verdict forced the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board to issue closure notices to 893 textile units for failing to install a common effluent treatment plant. The factories were reported to have discharged 17-18 million litres a day of untreated effluents into the Dravyawati river, affecting the health of villagers and crops in the area.
The future of the workers in the few remaining factories hangs in the balance. Very soon they will have to choose between leaving Sanganer and switching to other jobs.