Protection of workers from Dust in Agro Process Industry

Different activities in pulse and flour mill greatly increase dust concentration. During this study very few workers were observed to use any type of respiratory protection gadget. There is lack of awareness on the potential health effects of crop dust exposure among workers. Dust concentration in both pulse and flour mill was above the standard limit of 10 mg/m3 for total dust and above 3 mg/m3 for respirable dust as per ACGIH standards. Six different types of available and developed personal dust protector were evaluated for flour and pulse mill workers against dust hazard.The masks were tested as per IS 9473-2002 for chemical dust, its filtering efficiency cannot be dependable for agricultural dust.The suitability performances was recorded in terms of breathing resistance, dust filtration performance, leakage of air from sides, feeling of tightness on face, rate of sweating, and Spoil and Smudge of Skin during use of dust protectors while in use.. The dust protector of disposable cloth material was noted to have the highest acceptability during working. Thus, cloth type dust protector provided the highest dust protection.