Congress flags suicides by diamond workers in Surat, says govt must protect them from vagaries of market

New Delhi: Flagging the issue of suicides by diamond workers in Surat in the last 18 months, the Congress on Tuesday said they must be registered and provided financial assistance to protect them from the vagaries of the market.

In a post on X, Congress general secretary in-charge, communications, Jairam Ramesh cited a media report which claimed that job losses and factory closures were pushing Surat's diamond workers to the edge and there had been 71 suicides in 18 months.

"In the last 18 months, at least 71 diamond workers have taken their lives in Surat. Surat has a long and storied history as one of the world's greatest centres for the diamond trade," Ramesh said on X.

Estimates suggest that there are 25 lakh workers in the diamond industry in Gujarat, with 8-10 lakh workers in Surat alone, he said.

"The advent of lab-grown diamonds has wreaked havoc on diamond industries across the world. Surat has been hard hit, with large-scale layoffs (up to 15,000 workers between February and June 2024 alone) and pay cuts," he said.

It has spawned acute financial and psychological distress among the workers in this industry, the Congress leader said.

These diamond workers are not permanent and registered employees, so the government has no data on them or specific schemes for their welfare, Ramesh said.

"We must do better, we must recognise and register these workers, afford them financial assistance, and protect this industry and its workers from the vagaries of the market," he said.