I think it is all relative....I have had money then lost it all and you do learn to live with what you have and still find some semblance of happiness....they may not see it as we do....they survive. BUt totally agree with how lucky we are....to be here.....so much comlaining and belly aching ya hear and maybe more should see this....a life of toil....and the chance at a better life
You mean the Organised Labor and Regulations that made it too expensive todo in the west!!! Someone has to do it. If you want to make that argument you better be ready to pay the difference. We expect things on the cheap in the west, but are not willing to accept why it is cheap. Remember That.@@obfuscated3090
@@PiTjlang and if the process is made to cost an astronomically higher amount than it does right now not saying I'm against it, it should abso-fucking-lutely be something first world countries get under control, but the incentives not to are obvious
I'm really surprised the owner gave you such open access to his operation. Usually those shipbreaking yards are closely guarded and people who speak to journalists are immediately fired. The documentary is really great, eye-opening and absolutely shocking all at the same time. Next time we complain, maybe we should think of those people - just to put things into perspective.
The biggest irony is the fact that the only good of good dudes of owners would give documentary journalists access to their operation so that many workers of them seemed to be rather encouraged and even happy to work and live their life despite that the journalists clearly tried to paint them as poor helpless victims... Yeah, we can see another conflict between naive moralists from the west and hardworking people from the 3rd world...
I visited in 1994, climbed a rope ladder in the stern and ate breakfast . It is a fascinating place, like a scene out of Mad Max. Greeting from Australia😅
I worked as a marine engineer for over 20 years. One of the more serious concerns when working on older ships was the amount of asbestos that was used in their construction. If it was known that a ship had asbestos used in its construction any structural work carried out would require testing for asbestos. If found a specialist team would be brought in to make the area safe, then we could carry out any repairs that were required. It is frightening to see the process used in this video. No regard for health and safety. I guess that is why the ship breaking yards are in these countries where laws are few and safety is of little concern. You an be sure that some individuals there and in the West are making a lot of money from this.
@mike Yes. It makes you realise how much shit you westerners sends to countries like India. You Loot their country, steal all their resources then sends them your crap. Your old ships, your old clothes, your old all appliances, and so on.... Stop being such a double standard big hypocrite.!
@@mitsos_306 I disagree,it has nothing to do with being unfortunate. Is it why the likes of Liz Trust had to go to India to threaten them if they buy oil from Russia.? You are all a bunch of , thieves and Bullies. Its in your F**king DNA..
This is by far , one of THE best documentaries I have watched in many years. It held my attention to the point that I forgot I was watching this on UA-cam. Very Interesting , quality production and content. Thank you.
100 % truth, I beached a ship here 17 years back and the same contract I left the shipping industry after what I saw was done to nature and to the workers on the ground, it is a really terrible situation there, watching this documentary is just a mear insight to what goes on there but to see the reality one must visit in person.
"...... A place where ships come to die, and men die with them..." Automatically suggests the documentary is world class, and is well done.......that was one of the best documentaries I have ever seen....though it is a sad one.
@Andrew Dow "A ship runs fullspeed at the shore, inches away from the workers." - when it's not even cleared the water by a nose. (yet, the camera angle leans toward it, like in a disaster movie) Or, to put in shorter: You are correct, Sir, have your deserved like!
These people are getting rich (for them) and moving up the food chain. As the industry develops things will professionalize. Looking at them like victims is stupid, our great grandparents had it rougher.
@@taylorc2542 Not the workers. They are poor and will stay poor and diseased by the fumes, oils and hard work. It's the *shipyard owners* and *steel merchants* who will get rich and richer. Until the workers do what our grandparents did: unionise and demand DECENT PAY and SAFETY. We had coal mines over here and workers were treated like black slaves. Owners called in the Royal Army and they shot at the crowd on strike: 4 dead and 11 wounded, and they got all away with it!
@@williamnordeste9653 Sadly there will be many to take their place...But I agree...if they ALL banded together, there may be some improvements in safety and conditions.
The most heart touching fact is that they appreciate their work and have a noble attitude towards their work, even when they are engulfed with misery and poverty they seek to have a religious means to their life being deprived of love, care and joy. they seek some meaning to it.
This documentary is one of the best iv'e seen in a long time, you do not see the narrator, he is cool; intelligent, serious, and to the point, others iv'e watched, the reporters keep showcasing themselves in the frame to show off what they are wearing, and how wonderful they look, it's distracting, then i just have to move on, not withstanding, i would love to see them in frame once in a while
My God. I have no words to describe the whirlwind of feelings I felt watching this documentary. I never imagined that the end of a ship's life would bring such sadness to human life. I pray to God to give comfort to all those involved and their families. Work hard to change their future. Thanks to the creators of this documentary for showing us the reality, excellent work!
@@mr.giraffe7076 without good advantages how else is one to feed their family. If you were born in impoverished conditions wtf would do because we all can’t make it
The amount of years I've been after this documentary... I'm talking about more than 10 years. I've emailed NFB countless of times about it, I've even wanted to purchase it, but with no luck. They never even contacted me back. Anyhow, I am really grateful I can enjoy it here.
I work in the maritime industry and my friends are too. It seems that only a few people knows the end of giant ships. I learnt a lot from this video as a member of this industry and shocked that there are still people who works in such a dangerous environment with little hope.
In 2019 they opened a hospital, with doctors every day, ambulance service, x-ray, burns ward, operating room and some other facilities. Free of charge. It was funded by government, international donors, and one of the ship wreck yard owner.
I work with the homeless and substance abuse but seeing this just makes me think, I’m off to India in January 2020 on a cruise, I’ve booked a private trip to Mumbai, I just have total respect and admiration for these wonderful people who work so hard just to survive. I feel so guilty.
The guy in the red t-shirt, he speaks pretty good English. Infact better than the owners. Usually people don't speak like this unless they are educated. Wonder what his story is, how he ended up being a ship breaker.
"And no blueprints to tell where to cut."..........A Korean built ship, Korean blueprints.....Even if they had a set, could they even read them? These guys are self taught and much like the men in America that built the Brooklyn bridge, the Empire State Building....ETC. Same conditions. Same danger. Same low pay for what they do. My Hat is off to all of them.
I would like the children and the teenagers here in NZ to view this documentary and for them to think about just how lucky they really are with the lifestyle that they have been born into. I honestly felt sorry for the two brothers following the death of their mother, but even in that grime ship breaking world, there was a heart, in fact two hearts looking after those boys in need. An excellent documentary ..... well done!
@@MrKritterh If you google up the image "Burning the Brushwood" by finnish artist Eero Järnefelt you can se how scandinavia was created. Extremely hard work PLUS terrible winters and darkness far up north with LOW natural resources and harsh growing conditions. The reason why scandinavia is less populated than the rest of the world is that the historical carrying capacity of the land is comparatively low. It is an enormous feat that they could create the best countries in the world given their harsh enviroment. Africa however is the absolutely most fertile (NO WINTERS) and naturally resource rich continent (ENORMOUS), so you are simply wrong. Also: "most of the Western infrastructure was built on the backs of slave or migrant workers" This is not correct. Please read "a history of slavery" by Thomas Sowell. However: that argument might be made for ancient rome, egypt and the middle east (ottoman & persian empires). Since they actually where slave economies. The arabs have taken millions of both african and european slaves over the centruries. And did not stop until the british empire vowed to end slavery world wide in 1807. Google "arab slave trade" and you will find the relevant wikipedia article if you dont want to read sowells book.
I don’t remember when did I last watch, a documentary so powerful in terms of treatment and heart wrenching in terms of the idea and the issue discussed over here. If it’s not an eye opener , I wonder what would be
Yes! I agree 100%, but I would extend this to "required viewing for ALL humans in all so-called 'developed countries', not just Western, Anglospheric ones.
It drives me nuts to be told that I can't live without one of their "essential" luxuries while trying to watch the documentary. Nothing seems more absurd than to have their trivial shit rammed down our throats while trying to understand the predicament of others...
@@darkprotector9562 Agreed. It's infuriating. Does it seem to you that the workers in this documentary seem happier and healthier with better posture than most folks I see stumbling down the streets of the West, clutching their latest smart toys?
This is so sad. It makes me feel so spoiled for complaining about my so called problems ! compared to these people's problems , I don't have any worth mentioning ! I'm going to pray for them. Everyone should pray for them too .
by praying for them brings us together as humanity and God can reward them later for what they endured in this life. I also respect and honor young men who died in war another hell on earth. at least we can offer our prayers!
@@mylanmay8326 no need to discriminate my guy. if you dont believe in God, you too cannot disprove Gods existence. If you rely on science well just know science is always questioning the unknown, even contemplating the existence of God, don't shame people for their differences. Accept individuals, we are all unique for a reason.
The first thing they need to do trash their idols. And the people need to take back their country. There is plenty without ship breaking, it's just the people allow the rich to control them.
I love the music at the end...awesome! FYI, I saw one of the very ferry ships that I have worked on for the Alaska Marine Highway System...the name of the ferry ship built in 1962, which ended up here in the same shipbreaking yard, in this video, was the State Ferry Taku! She was 55 years old when she was beached here...it was a sad event especially for the people that sailed and worked on her. Thank you.
You see 'honest work'? Looks like good'ol exploitation to me. And while the first world purposely drags it's feet huge $$$ is being made off this exploration.
@@haparoundthehouse6618 It is so sad..this documentary is so frustrating to see...so many improvements to be made. Training, an on site first aid bay, protective gear..so many things. :(
@@Oakleaf700 Sadly those improvements will make the costs too high and other 3rd world countries will be next on the exploitation list. What really needs to happen is a global-wage/environmental/worker safety system. This will cut into profits. The best process corporations have to insure uninterrupted profits is an uninformed public.
Had the opportunity to visit this place last month (September,2019) things haven't improved much for the workers. they still live in the same conditions as seen in the video. Wages will never increase here as there are always people waiting to take up your place if you quit. The Gujarat government could have easily created a hostel for the workers and a good speciality hospital also while implementing stricter safety norms. Learn from Kerala government who built hostel for migrant workers even when there is no specific industry in the state.
It wouldn't be that hard to throw up some large hostels with that many people looking for work. Anyone with money could help. U hear about all these billionaire philanthropists. Why can't any of them help ? Help from any government isn't comimg
Thank you for informing the world of this atrocity committed by all of the irresponsible people involved. I pray this situation will improve dramatically within a very short time. Peace & Love ❤️
I did see something on that from a program about ship disasters. Over time they get metal fatigue and so are no longer safe. Bulk carriers tend to have some of the biggest issues. Sadly for bulk carrier crews sometimes the owners push the limit on that and some have been lost when they have split in heavy weather.
@@timprussell Eventually, the ships are beyond economical repair. Parts that cost a few dollars and easy to obtain when they were built now cost hundreds of dollars and are hard to find.
Ships have a life span of approximately 20-30 years due to many factors. After that time, maritime insurance companies will not insure them, hence the only option is to sell the vessels for scrap.
This is so sad. It makes me feel so spoiled for complaining about my so called problems! compared to these people's problems, I don't have any worth mentioning! Films like this make you realise how lucky you are to live a comfortable life with prospects and hope....Best doc I've ever seen.
Sickening actually,the fact he took an oath as a doctor to care for his patients and just laughs at the toxic enslavement of society's most vulnerable.
@@elusivejugmaster43 and what exactly can he do? I learnt to admire Indian people who in a position of this doctor, being one against thousand miseries, does not collapse, but does best, even if it is just an advice to stay upwind. He can't single handedly make the life of these shipbreakers good, but if he can teach some of them to use the wind, which is free to them, to use to get better breathing air, then he did more to improve their lives than most shipowners did. Small steps and cheer them, for hells sake.
@@MarekLewandowski_EE that’s insanely patronizing. So that’s what qualifies as a doctor in India? Someone who understands that wind carries smoke? All the workers understand that. A child understands that. If you think they need someone to tell them to stand up wind, you must think they’re stupid
After 10 minutes of watching I'm ready to mention this in any Reddit thread even remotely related to shipyards, shipbreaking, India or poverty. I'm an expert on these topics now.
Ive been to this shipyard as a child as a tourist with my parents. I got some really nice items, a pair of steiner binoculars for free which were really expensive that would have been thrown away otherwise. But yea, terrible condition from what I remember, fumes everywhere, hard to breath and the water- as black as I can remember
my uncle was a ship yard welder in early 1980s , working at port of San Francisco California. then the ship yard business ended in 1987 due to high labor cost and polution. he is over 90 years old now.
This echo's of the days of the early U.S. when Factories, Mines, and other Industry treated citizens the same way. Children working 10 + hours a day. Men and Women used and tossed aside when they were too old or broken to keep up the pace. If you were hurt, tough $hit. Slowly unions and the reluctant Government had to do something. The saying never goes away. "If you do not learn from History.....
EpiDemic117 Then those companies have no business in that country whatsoever. That’s the only way they’ll comply. It’s expensive but it’s for the workers that build them up in the first place.
Actually, that industrial life was destroyed by machines, but not by government. In first world countries peoples doesn't work 10+ hours because machines does. Automated lines and robots changed our work, life and whole world. Business doesn't need hundreds of people on hard works because their work are more expensive and less productive than machine's. Robot doesn't need daily salary, weekends, holidays, vacations, health insurance and it's can work 24/7 with micron accuracy. Eventually, third world countries like India also will get cheap machinery working power, and all that workers became too expensive to use. It's called the progress and it's unstoppable.
@@TheKingOfHalo If those companies pack up and leave, the workers have nothing. Yes, it sucks but the workers are there because it's their best option and the companies are there because the labor is cheap. Every developed country has had to go through this kind of stage. As India develops, there will be more money, more options and conditions will improve. Nobody would take this job in the US for $2 a day. Why? Because there are better ways to make money. You would have to pay more and reduce the dangers to get people in the US to do this job. As India's economy develops, the same thing will happen. There will be more options for workers and the ship breakers will have to pay more and make it safer to get workers. You can't just regulate your way to prosperity. If you try, it will just lock them out of world markets and into poverty forever. Unfortunately, they have to go through this stage of economic development.
I wish there was a way to trade every person here in the US that hates this country with a person working at this shipyard. I hate how people don't appreciate how good we have it and bring one of these ship breakers family's over here and watch what they will do with that opportunity
youre very short sighted, the reason the US is so good is because of those people you say hate this country. The people that protested for better labor conditions and so forth. Simply because the country is better than most doesnt mean there is 0% room for improvement. If youre too lazy to make change dont knock people who are.
Very well done documentary. This was hard to watch. It hurts to see what these men have to do , the work conditions, just to survive. I wish I was rich , I would help them all. No one should work under such harsh circumstances. I will never complain about my job again. 😔I pray for all these men and there family's.
Wow. I just can’t believe they are so grateful for everything they have. The story of the kid that lost his mom from a snake really got me where I live.
I visited in 1994 , climbed a rope ladder to have breakfast on a ship. Just fascinating, like a scene from Mad Max. Also the road into sells everything from the ship's. It was one of my goals when visiting India. Also visited Gardani beach in Pakistan. Yes I've always loved ship's. Sad to see them being destroyed.
Not destroyed, recycled. Just like cars, where it is now approaching 95% of a car is recycled. So you have these old, dirty burning leaking worn out ships who's steel is 100% recycled, along with all the copper, aluminum, etc which is a massive energy savings verses starting from ore. The millions of tons of ore that would have to be mined to obtain the iron and other alloys that scraping these ships save.
@@scottpecora371 Somewhat unfortunate that they cannot recycle the health of their pittance paid workforce when their eyesight, lungs and limbs are irreparably damaged by working in extremely hazardous and dangerous conditions without reference to safety practices, procedures or PPE! In truth, they could introduce and enforce a considerably high level of workers safeguards (in comparison to the zero amount they currently have) but they simply choose not to do so. The owners couldn't care less about any of their workers, because there's always someone wanting a job! The caste system has a lot to do with this too.
@@felixcat9318 It's simple: If they introduce all those safeguards then shipbreaking will shift to other countries with even lower standards, just like it shifted away from the USA and Europe to India and Bangladesh.
The same story happened 40 years ago in China,and a lot of the people did this dangerous work not changed their life from poor to wealth since the works shifted to India.Good wishes to the workers :Be safe.
@@Billy_Darley That's why they aren't broken down here. It's too dangerous for the American workforce and would be too expensive to make safe. So we let less fortunate nations do it for us.
I have torched scrap metal for 5 years in the U.S. I have cut almost everything imaginable. I wouldn't mind having a chance to be part of breaking a ship. Torch cutting is a skill and by what I have seen so far these guys are good at what they do.
It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it. I worked at Todd Shipyard in the summers of 1968-69 in Galveston, TX. It was a dirty, hot, miserable way to make my money for the next year's college expenses. Watching this video, I can still hear the sounds and smell the torches and smoke like it was yesterday.
Mr. Ken dam i worked as welder in machine shop, and loved every breath of smoke, dangerous metal being moved an water ballons thrown at each other during a shift. I loved every minute of my llow wage job. I learned so dam much💥🚂🚂👊🇺🇸🍼🍼
I worked at peck iron in Portsmouth Va , I know that smell. 30 years and I still remember. Horrible job, but somebody has to do it. Those without money will do it . They have no choice.
@@ericblade8330 joking aside , don't sound like a good time either. Saw a few fab people at the scrap yard, they didn't last long. The boss quit hiring them.
I enjoy running a cutting torch and repairing/maintaining welding equipment. If I had to work at an Indian breakers I'd absolutely want to be a cutter because it beats manually moving all the steel cutters cut off!
Good evening I don’t normally comment on the things I watch on UA-cam but I fell compelled to thank the film makers for one of the most moving documentary’s I have ever watched thank you
This was hard to watch. Gave me another reason NOT! to complain about the littlest things. God bless those workers who risk it all to put food on their families tables. 🙏🏽🙏🏽
RICK WAY, He didn't get drunk. Didn't you hear him? he said at the end of a long work day I must have 1. There are no drug stores, no doctors, no medicines for a simple headache. That fermented drink is probably the only thing close to a aspirin. Hell if I work 10 hours a day, 7 days a week in those hot oily contaminated condition, shit man I'd need at least 4 of those a day. And I don't even drink. GOD PLEASE BLESS THESE PEOPLE THAT MORE SADETY REGULATION COME THEIR WAY.
RICK WRAY, oh yeah I remember now. I'm sorry dude. I guess it's just a hard think to know that something this crazy go on. But it I had to, than I would work there. And the funny thing is RICK, I'm the type of worker who would only want the welder job. I would want to be on the ground carrying shit for $3 in a 16 hours day. I be risking my eye sight and all the other crazy for $7. Oh and by the way your job is just as fucking crazy. TV never show your real work. But I tried once. Soooo dark inside, I fell over and screamed for help, until other fire dudes carry me out. Done no more black smoke for me. I decided to fight crime instead. But thanks for what you do.
I live 20 km away from this place...believe me if this place shuts down my whole district will go bankrupt...as shipbreaking and re-rolling are only two industries that are left here
@@dineshparmar6464 @Dinesh Parmar Rather than collecting tax ,The govt dosent care about us . If this industry collapse we will still die of hunger. What are we supposed to do.
If an NGO wants to help, the first, easiest and least expensive way would be to get basic PPE to those workers. It would also greatly boost productivity so anyone in Alang supervision reading this should consider it. Eye protection makes it MUCH easier to cut fast and and accurately. (I have plenty of experience using cutting torches.) Gloves and boots make it easier to handle scrap and walk on dangerous surfaces. These could all be sourced in India and would create MORE jobs. Even if they don't care about workers the profit motive should interest the bosses. Lack of training is stupid. Accidents slow production. No one benefits.
You're absolutely right. Unfortunately as far as the owners are concerned protective equipment and training are just an expense, can't do the math or just too stupid to understand or bother. Real shame.
It has to be a gradual cultural change. What do you do when they sell their PPE and claim that they work better without it? This has to come from the management paying their wages and has to be enforced: no PPE, no pay. That enforcement has to come from regulation, checks and fines. It's not as easy as you might think. As for training, training to do what exactly? They learn on the job. If they can't do it, there are plenty that can. It is not quicker to wear a harness with a two point attachment working at heights, or to rig safer alternatives. It slows you down but can save your life. Much quicker without, and if there is an accident, just forget about that person, barely any or no compensation to pay, humans are one of the best renewable resources in a place like this. Equipment needs regularly checking and maintenance so you need people and systems to do that. It's not cheap and will frequently get damaged from rough edged steel. You are using 1st world thinking in a 3rd world situation. I wouldn't condescend to call any of these people stupid. The only stupidity they have is in their religious faith; but that's probably something that helps them survive.
The rich don't see their workers as human. They see them as less than cattle. Kill one, a thousand more are begging to take the dead man's job. What you see here is free market, unregulated capitalism at it's peak. No unions. No worker's rights. Rich people free to make money off the sweat of the poor. Your grandfathers fought, literally fought, for better conditions than this and now you're giving them up to "the job creators." Make no mistake, grinding poverty is good for these bosses, it makes workers desperate. It's good for anyone who wants to underpay their workers, treat them like they are worth less because they weren't born into a rich family. We've had it so good for so long we forget what the unions have won for us, so we let it go. and so the gap between rich and poor is expanding again. This is the future for a right-wing world.
During my college days I used to work here. It's totally environmental disaster and working conditions of labour is pathetic. But since there are less opportunities to earn money people migrating from different states and living a life with really a lower standard of living. It sucks. People have no idea about how they being exploited. I worked here for daily wage which was around 3 US dollars a day.
The sad fact is that in a country with the population that India has......life is cheap. When a worker is killed....there are easily 100 more people waiting in line for that job. That's life in the third world for you. Sad, but it's been going on as long as humanity has existed.
Yup, and it's disgusting. Shipping companies shouldn't be allowed to do this. The government's of these nations are also trying to push for environmental laws. I just hope that one day these ship breaking companies are forced to put these ships into dry docks to dismantle them. Instead of right on the beach.
Yes, they do, read Seth Speaks, the eternal validity of the soul. This is something that every personality on the planet has been through or still has to go through. that doesn't mean that we just have to accept it though, we can still try to improve people's conditions and drive out greed which is what basically creates this.
As a marine engineer, I felt that so called human attachment to my vessel. Shit it breaks my heart seeing my ship being scrapped, for I called it once my home.
@@MayankPrasad111 Jesus cares. Jesus came, died, rose from the dead, to save us from our sins, to have eternal life. Human life is NEVER cheap or scrap.
Thank you NFB for the quality of your subject matter, and film making. You tirelessly take on projects that other film groups are unable to fund. The overall solution to this subject is an international law requiring the input the cost of the Shipbreaking into the price of the Shipbuilding. In essence the buyers have paid for the Shipbreaking up front, and can return the vessel to the builders who have already been paid to scrap it. This will mean that consumers will pay more for their goods as the cost of the shipping will be passed onto products, it will also mean that Shipbreaking yards such as this one in India may cease to exist, and the livelihood of all those involved.
It is so wrong...But even in UK industrial accidents were bad before legislation came in.. {Peoples of the Abyss by Jack London described London,England in about 1890. and how workers were crushed and lamed and thrown out, penniless. it needs government action, not greed and corruption.
The problem is that is the machines would be expensive and the ships would simply just go where the labour is cheaper again. It's like you didn't listen to him when he explained why ship deconstruction is in India and not in the west.
Your gorgeous....I am from nova scotia....had the chance to sneak on an old Russian radar ship that ended up into our harbour from a bad storm. The boat itself was rendered inoperable during the storm...but we managed to sneak into the marine slip and used a later to shimmy onto the boat from the wharf....was like stepping into a time capsule and everything was there Including canned Russian seafood ....very Erie.....
Unbelievable. Those pilots and engineers of the the ship show more empathy towards the ship than the poor workers who risk life and limb to break the ships.
Greetings fella, i worked at smith dock shipyard ,south bank ,River Tees,,,,,, i was 16 yrs when i saw my first keel being layout, now you have shown the end The dismantling ,Health and Safety did exist,,,,, thank you once again
As a ships chief engineer when you spend years at sea and shipyard periods keeping them running you hate seeing all your care and worry come under the breakers torch
Why do you think a ships captain or engineer know anything about what really goes on at this ship wreckers yard? Did you know about Alang and the work conditions before you watched this documentary??
A wonderful documentary......... Heart touching...... Contractors and owners sucking the blood out of poor man's lives and pushing them to desperate living conditions. An eye opener ...definitely......to realize and introspect how lucky we are to have a place to live, good food to eat, good air to breathe, good water to drink and all the other luxuries of gadgets, furniture, so on....................still we see people around us, leading unsatisfied lives, blaming their fortune. High time to do self-introspection.........
@@serioussam909 No, these luxury yachts will be maintained and exchange hands for quite some time, before being broken down where they are to reside, notice how there was no luxury cruisers or yachts there. only industrial ships, cargo ships, tankers, haulers etc. Yachts can be broken down much easier, cleaner and faster in western countries.
Your a left winged idiot +Kyee71, the opening scene was fucking shameful and the reason i will never spend 1 dime on these idiots!! 2:53 "my parents life in sheer poverty and hunger" yet they made multiple kids.. i cant feel sorry for stupid people, i cant!, the parents have a shit life, yet make kids?? cause logic??... dont send money to third world countries!!! cause in the short term they will have food and will feel like kings, than fuck everything around them, and 5-10 years later you have a starving population worse than before!, IF a people cant help them selves, they have no right to be on the planet!, and the 10% rich countries on this planet cant support the 90% third world nations!, either they help them selves! or they die!, its survival of the fittest! NOT survival of the begging stupid idiots!, and once again, you can send billions of dollars to poor countries, and it will help them only short term!!, corruption, mismanagement and wars will make sure not even 5% of your money will go to ithe people that need it!, and iuf everything goes to them, than its only short term solution, not long term!, they need to grow food them selves, not have us ship it to them!, if the farms cant support the population than the population is too big ,or the farms to small!.. i thought you left winged idiots, already knew this? in the 1990s baind aid, and live aid!, billions of food were shipped to africa , and did it help?? yes short term.. and is africa now 20-30 years later, still the same shit hole, yes it is!!!, cause NOTHING has been planned long term how they should become, self sufficient!
H.D B. Yeah, really. And couldn’t wait to get their children’s butts to work in a filthy, dangerous environment and aspire to still be poor. Apparently there is no compromise between full on exploitation of the people and environment and “left wingnuts.” There are some valid points in that rant, but absolutely no suggestions for alternatives. Typical Right Wing Lug Nut.
Ditto Boomerhgt! Wonderful documentary..Makes me want to roll up sleeves and help these poor workers achieve a better life somehow.. heartbreaking really!
After watching this, I have a new found sense of just how fortunate I was to be born where I was, heartbreaking seeing the poverty and choices these people live with and how they live with it, incredible
I visited Alang in 1994, climbed the rope ladder and ate breakfast on a ship. Great to see. The road in is lined with goods from the ships. They should run tours there. It is fascinating.
Sure. Let the plot owners make even more money. Notice the guys all standing round as the last ship comes in? They aren't hurting. They make a show for the camera and then scurry home to what the breakers would call a palace.
40 years ago this happened in England, Turkey and Italy and no one cared. In fact, these ships and the technology that came with them brought the people in Alang and everywhere else the wealth and progress that enabled them to be anything else than a farmer, priest or soldier, drive cars, buy in supermarkets and browse the internet. Maybe in the future, robots and machines will replace the workers to scrap the future ships, but where will the people then work?
Films like this make you realise how lucky you are to live a comfortable life with prospects and hope
We have that because of ORGANIZED LABOR and GOVERNMENT REGULATION. Remember that.
jhon doe Your a fucking moron
I think it is all relative....I have had money then lost it all and you do learn to live with what you have and still find some semblance of happiness....they may not see it as we do....they survive. BUt totally agree with how lucky we are....to be here.....so much comlaining and belly aching ya hear and maybe more should see this....a life of toil....and the chance at a better life
@@ronaldpellet854 But everyone but the rich are being ripped off by the drug companies and insurance companies.
You mean the Organised Labor and Regulations that made it too expensive todo in the west!!! Someone has to do it. If you want to make that argument you better be ready to pay the difference. We expect things on the cheap in the west, but are not willing to accept why it is cheap. Remember That.@@obfuscated3090
I work in Norway, demolishing oil platforms. The astronomical differences are just insane.
As a Canadian I can just imagine
Tell us more, please
Ja det kan du trygt si:-p
So ur saying it can be done relatively safely w/ minimal environmental impact if thoughtful measures are enacted?
@@PiTjlang and if the process is made to cost an astronomically higher amount than it does right now
not saying I'm against it, it should abso-fucking-lutely be something first world countries get under control, but the incentives not to are obvious
I'm really surprised the owner gave you such open access to his operation. Usually those shipbreaking yards are closely guarded and people who speak to journalists are immediately fired.
The documentary is really great, eye-opening and absolutely shocking all at the same time. Next time we complain, maybe we should think of those people - just to put things into perspective.
The biggest irony is the fact that the only good of good dudes of owners would give documentary journalists access to their operation so that many workers of them seemed to be rather encouraged and even happy to work and live their life despite that the journalists clearly tried to paint them as poor helpless victims...
Yeah, we can see another conflict between naive moralists from the west and hardworking people from the 3rd world...
This is from a few years ago when there wasn't so much politics around the breakers
I visited in 1994, climbed a rope ladder in the stern and ate breakfast . It is a fascinating place, like a scene out of Mad Max. Greeting from Australia😅
@@perpetualgrin5804must have been 😎
I worked as a marine engineer for over 20 years. One of the more serious concerns when working on older ships was the amount of asbestos that was used in their construction. If it was known that a ship had asbestos used in its construction any structural work carried out would require testing for asbestos. If found a specialist team would be brought in to make the area safe, then we could carry out any repairs that were required.
It is frightening to see the process used in this video. No regard for health and safety. I guess that is why the ship breaking yards are in these countries where laws are few and safety is of little concern.
You an be sure that some individuals there and in the West are making a lot of money from this.
Yep, Hunter Biden. 10% to the big guy.
All over the world bozo not just the west. They do the job there government know try thinking before you comment!
@mike Yes. It makes you realise how much shit you westerners sends to countries like India. You Loot their country, steal all their resources then sends them your crap. Your old ships, your old clothes, your old all appliances, and so on.... Stop being such a double standard big hypocrite.!
Unfortunately life has not the same value in all places on earth.
Even in our own country we can spot great inequalities!
@@mitsos_306 I disagree,it has nothing to do with being unfortunate. Is it why the likes of Liz Trust had to go to India to threaten them if they buy oil from Russia.? You are all a bunch of , thieves and Bullies. Its in your F**king DNA..
This is by far , one of THE best documentaries I have watched in many years. It held my attention to the point that I forgot I was watching this on UA-cam. Very Interesting , quality production and content. Thank you.
100 % truth, I beached a ship here 17 years back and the same contract I left the shipping industry after what I saw was done to nature and to the workers on the ground, it is a really terrible situation there, watching this documentary is just a mear insight to what goes on there but to see the reality one must visit in person.
"...... A place where ships come to die, and men die with them..."
Automatically suggests the documentary is world class, and is well done.......that was one of the best documentaries I have ever seen....though it is a sad one.
either that or unnecessarily melodramatic
@Andrew Dow "A ship runs fullspeed at the shore, inches away from the workers." - when it's not even cleared the water by a nose. (yet, the camera angle leans toward it, like in a disaster movie)
Or, to put in shorter: You are correct, Sir, have your deserved like!
@@jayswarrow1196 cnp
These people are getting rich (for them) and moving up the food chain. As the industry develops things will professionalize. Looking at them like victims is stupid, our great grandparents had it rougher.
@@taylorc2542 Not the workers. They are poor and will stay poor and diseased by the fumes, oils and hard work. It's the *shipyard owners* and *steel merchants* who will get rich and richer. Until the workers do what our grandparents did: unionise and demand DECENT PAY and SAFETY. We had coal mines over here and workers were treated like black slaves. Owners called in the Royal Army and they shot at the crowd on strike: 4 dead and 11 wounded, and they got all away with it!
Is it just me, or did anyone else’s heart break seeing that wee boy going to sleep outside with just the wee radio to keep him company
And he's a fortunate one....
It took me back to my early teens, when I was 13, I did the same,,, but we grow,,,
Yes, a wee bit.
I was thinking my job kinda sucks but after seeing this I'm actually looking forward to going to work tommorow
If they all threaten to quit without some changes they might see more results.
@@williamnordeste9653 Sadly there will be many to take their place...But I agree...if they ALL banded together, there may be some improvements in safety and conditions.
Lol. Well said brother, you made me laugh
youre still being exploited tho, just not nearly as badly as these guys
lol just don't tell this to your boss.
The most heart touching fact is that they appreciate their work and have a noble attitude towards their work, even when they are engulfed with misery and poverty they seek to have a religious means to their life being deprived of love, care and joy. they seek some meaning to it.
Religion is the opiate of the uneducated
@@Pauly421 religion is hope for the hopeless!
Makes you realize the so-called civil "rights" groups in the west are a bunch of lazy, envious, marxist whiners
@@Pauly421 What did atheism do for anyone?
This documentary is one of the best iv'e seen in a long time,
you do not see the narrator, he is cool; intelligent, serious, and to the point,
others iv'e watched, the reporters keep showcasing themselves
in the frame to show off what they are wearing, and how wonderful
they look, it's distracting, then i just have to move on, not withstanding,
i would love to see them in frame once in a while
You have discovered the National Film Board of Canada. The best in the world.
@@martinkostian2817 Thank you, now i can't get enough of it, first time that
i am aware of it
Same..great narration, the workers were free to speak for themselves, Very respectfully done
@@martinkostian2817 I did think I detected a Canadian accent in the narration :)
That's because it's not made by CNN or one of those other stupid, biased networks
I watched this absolute masterpiece years ago and I’ve been looking for it since. Thank you so much!
My God. I have no words to describe the whirlwind of feelings I felt watching this documentary. I never imagined that the end of a ship's life would bring such sadness to human life. I pray to God to give comfort to all those involved and their families. Work hard to change their future. Thanks to the creators of this documentary for showing us the reality, excellent work!
Blessings on the workers there.....may the Great Spirit watch over them, their families, and all of us....
Well, at least they're willing to work, unlike so many American vagrants.
"Whether its the owner, contractor or supervisor... they want to squeeze the life out of poor people"
-words of wisdom from a shipbreaker
They're fine, part of getting rich is changing your standards about safety.
@@taylorc2542 yeah change from giving a FUCK to NOT.since you wouldn't be working there,or receiving the shit pay.
@@taylorc2542 You dont have many braincells left. I am sorry for you.
Allot of poor people and poor countries are full of idiots. Like, complete morons who make retarded life decisions.
@@mr.giraffe7076 without good advantages how else is one to feed their family. If you were born in impoverished conditions wtf would do because we all can’t make it
The amount of years I've been after this documentary... I'm talking about more than 10 years. I've emailed NFB countless of times about it, I've even wanted to purchase it, but with no luck. They never even contacted me back. Anyhow, I am really grateful I can enjoy it here.
I work in the maritime industry and my friends are too. It seems that only a few people knows the end of giant ships. I learnt a lot from this video as a member of this industry and shocked that there are still people who works in such a dangerous environment with little hope.
Such a powerful piece of work this. My hat's off to everyone who contributed.
In 2019 they opened a hospital, with doctors every day, ambulance service, x-ray, burns ward, operating room and some other facilities. Free of charge. It was funded by government, international donors, and one of the ship wreck yard owner.
If this is true thank you for this information!
but not 100% true right.. fact of life..
Lies, lies, lies.
Thats a big step in the right direction. They definitely need to invest in PPE.
@@leonotthelion ppe in these types of environment will do very little for protection..
I work with the homeless and substance abuse but seeing this just makes me think, I’m off to India in January 2020 on a cruise, I’ve booked a private trip to Mumbai, I just have total respect and admiration for these wonderful people who work so hard just to survive. I feel so guilty.
I bet your not on your cruise now
The guy in the red t-shirt, he speaks pretty good English. Infact better than the owners. Usually people don't speak like this unless they are educated. Wonder what his story is, how he ended up being a ship breaker.
"And no blueprints to tell where to cut."..........A Korean built ship, Korean blueprints.....Even if they had a set, could they even read them? These guys are self taught and much like the men in America that built the Brooklyn bridge, the Empire State Building....ETC. Same conditions. Same danger. Same low pay for what they do. My Hat is off to all of them.
Real eye opener.Thanks for the upload. Some tough, fearless people right there now. I wish them well.
I would like the children and the teenagers here in NZ to view this documentary and for them to think about just how lucky they really are with the lifestyle that they have been born into. I honestly felt sorry for the two brothers following the death of their mother, but even in that grime ship breaking world, there was a heart, in fact two hearts looking after those boys in need.
An excellent documentary ..... well done!
Yes!! I know your comment is 5 y.o., but I second everything you say, 100%.
My sincere salutes to all the team who made this documentary with absolute perfection.
someone from a Ted Talk said it best. To be born in a western country is like winning the lottery
Our ancestors built this for us. It was hard work. Not luck.
Except for infant circumcision.
@@MrKritterh If you google up the image "Burning the Brushwood" by finnish artist Eero Järnefelt you can se how scandinavia was created. Extremely hard work PLUS terrible winters and darkness far up north with LOW natural resources and harsh growing conditions. The reason why scandinavia is less populated than the rest of the world is that the historical carrying capacity of the land is comparatively low. It is an enormous feat that they could create the best countries in the world given their harsh enviroment. Africa however is the absolutely most fertile (NO WINTERS) and naturally resource rich continent (ENORMOUS), so you are simply wrong. Also: "most of the Western infrastructure was built on the backs of slave or migrant workers" This is not correct. Please read "a history of slavery" by Thomas Sowell. However: that argument might be made for ancient rome, egypt and the middle east (ottoman & persian empires). Since they actually where slave economies. The arabs have taken millions of both african and european slaves over the centruries. And did not stop until the british empire vowed to end slavery world wide in 1807. Google "arab slave trade" and you will find the relevant wikipedia article if you dont want to read sowells book.
Nobodys forcing them to stay there.
@@getchasome6230 lack of money and family duty is forcing them to stay there
I don’t remember when did I last watch, a documentary so powerful in terms of treatment and heart wrenching in terms of the idea and the issue discussed over here. If it’s not an eye opener , I wonder what would be
"this dharna...the ships die so we could survive". One of life's paradoxes.
All people in the USA should have this as required viewing.
Have the democrats in for long enough and this is what USA will look like.
@donkey lover Please provide us with a honest and reliable source for news....?
@donkey lover "real News".............so how is it living in Wuhan make work city?
Yes! I agree 100%, but I would extend this to "required viewing for ALL humans in all so-called 'developed countries', not just Western, Anglospheric ones.
That unreal feeling when watching UA-cam ads interrupt to show you a commercial of latest luxury class smartphone.
It drives me nuts to be told that I can't live without one of their "essential" luxuries while trying to watch the documentary. Nothing seems more absurd than to have their trivial shit rammed down our throats while trying to understand the predicament of others...
@@darkprotector9562 Agreed. It's infuriating.
Does it seem to you that the workers in this documentary seem happier and healthier with better posture than most folks I see stumbling down the streets of the West, clutching their latest smart toys?
This is so sad. It makes me feel so spoiled for complaining about my so called problems ! compared to these people's problems , I don't have any worth mentioning ! I'm going to pray for them. Everyone should pray for them too .
by praying for them brings us together as humanity and God can reward them later for what they endured in this life. I also respect and honor young men who died in war another hell on earth. at least we can offer our prayers!
yeah cause your prayers are going to make them feel better...
@@mylanmay8326 no need to discriminate my guy. if you dont believe in God, you too cannot disprove Gods existence. If you rely on science well just know science is always questioning the unknown, even contemplating the existence of God, don't shame people for their differences. Accept individuals, we are all unique for a reason.
The first thing they need to do trash their idols. And the people need to take back their country. There is plenty without ship breaking, it's just the people allow the rich to control them.
Prayer will not, and does not work. It’s almost offensive to offer as help. Action & reform is what these exploited people need.
I love the music at the end...awesome! FYI, I saw one of the very ferry ships that I have worked on for the Alaska Marine Highway System...the name of the ferry ship built in 1962, which ended up here in the same shipbreaking yard, in this video, was the State Ferry Taku! She was 55 years old when she was beached here...it was a sad event especially for the people that sailed and worked on her. Thank you.
This film has a kind of savage beauty, a real work of art.
They do honest work and are not scroungers... Hats off to these guys...
You see 'honest work'? Looks like good'ol exploitation to me. And while the first world purposely drags it's feet huge $$$ is being made off this exploration.
@@haparoundthehouse6618 What Ramesh means is that they work bloody hard..they put their lives on the line every day.
@@Oakleaf700 My post didn't minimize their efforts. And yes their is huge exploitation going on. (and yes hard work)
@@haparoundthehouse6618 It is so sad..this documentary is so frustrating to see...so many improvements to be made.
Training, an on site first aid bay, protective gear..so many things. :(
@@Oakleaf700 Sadly those improvements will make the costs too high and other 3rd world countries will be next on the exploitation list.
What really needs to happen is a global-wage/environmental/worker safety system.
This will cut into profits. The best process corporations have to insure uninterrupted profits is an uninformed public.
Had the opportunity to visit this place last month (September,2019) things haven't improved much for the workers. they still live in the same conditions as seen in the video. Wages will never increase here as there are always people waiting to take up your place if you quit. The Gujarat government could have easily created a hostel for the workers and a good speciality hospital also while implementing stricter safety norms. Learn from Kerala government who built hostel for migrant workers even when there is no specific industry in the state.
how i wish the same as you
общежития? больницы?!
да вы батенька. коммунист?! (сарказм)...
And our head of the country says Gujarat model of development...
It seems Gujarat means only Ahmedabad
It wouldn't be that hard to throw up some large hostels with that many people looking for work. Anyone with money could help. U hear about all these billionaire philanthropists. Why can't any of them help ? Help from any government isn't comimg
Captain!!! I just parked the ship here for a few minutes then it dissolved into the hands of jawas!!!!
Thank you for informing the world of this atrocity committed by all of the irresponsible people involved. I pray this situation will improve dramatically within a very short time.
Peace & Love ❤️
things don't change in India they get worse I am Indian
"If the cable snaps it could cut a man in half"
Me: Stares at frayed cable
*[Softly] don't*
I was waiting on them to say ......it’s happend before .
It is crazy to think of how much effort went into making those ships. You'd think it would take less to keep them going.
I did see something on that from a program about ship disasters. Over time they get metal fatigue and so are no longer safe. Bulk carriers tend to have some of the biggest issues. Sadly for bulk carrier crews sometimes the owners push the limit on that and some have been lost when they have split in heavy weather.
@@timprussell Eventually, the ships are beyond economical repair. Parts that cost a few dollars and easy to obtain when they were built now cost hundreds of dollars and are hard to find.
Ships have a life span of approximately 20-30 years due to many factors. After that time, maritime insurance companies will not insure them, hence the only option is to sell the vessels for scrap.
Выбора у людей не много, фактически, его нет. Смотреть не просто. Прям до слез. Спасибо огромное за фильм, очень тронуло.
This is so sad. It makes me feel so spoiled for complaining about my so called problems! compared to these people's problems, I don't have any worth mentioning! Films like this make you realise how lucky you are to live a comfortable life with prospects and hope....Best doc I've ever seen.
thank you for uploading this, what a harsh life these people live.
frig you
TheFartSmeller69420 epic spelling
This brought tears to my 68 year old eyes; human beings and especially children shouldn't need to exist in this hell hole.
"It's like smoking 15-20 packs of cigarettes a day. All the time. " said the doctor with a big smile on his face.
“You got enough smokes there Rick?!” 🤣👌
Sickening actually,the fact he took an oath as a doctor to care for his patients and just laughs at the toxic enslavement of society's most vulnerable.
@@elusivejugmaster43 and what exactly can he do? I learnt to admire Indian people who in a position of this doctor, being one against thousand miseries, does not collapse, but does best, even if it is just an advice to stay upwind. He can't single handedly make the life of these shipbreakers good, but if he can teach some of them to use the wind, which is free to them, to use to get better breathing air, then he did more to improve their lives than most shipowners did. Small steps and cheer them, for hells sake.
@@elusivejugmaster43 Honestly, they seem to laugh at anything in India.
@@MarekLewandowski_EE that’s insanely patronizing. So that’s what qualifies as a doctor in India? Someone who understands that wind carries smoke? All the workers understand that. A child understands that. If you think they need someone to tell them to stand up wind, you must think they’re stupid
The resilience of the human spirit, the ability to adapt to conditions some would consider unbearable even impossible is amazing.
It is called a slave mentality.
What an eye-opening documentary. More like this should be made and seen.
"Work upwind" Brilliant advice from the shipbreaker doctor. He acted like he's the first one to think of it.
After 10 minutes of watching I'm ready to mention this in any Reddit thread even remotely related to shipyards, shipbreaking, India or poverty.
I'm an expert on these topics now.
Peace… Shalom… Salam... Namaste and Thank You Everybody for All that you are doing for our Mother Earth 🙏🏻 😊 🌈 ✌ 🌷 ❤
All of these dudes have thousand yard stares
Even the kids.
they are dreaming of the day they come to America to own a 7/11
I've seen that in a lot of video from India.
@@cbly hahahahaha XD thats so fuckin true too! LMAO!
I believe India is on the metric system. They all have 1000 metre stares. Which is exactly one kilometre.
Ive been to this shipyard as a child as a tourist with my parents. I got some really nice items, a pair of steiner binoculars for free which were really expensive that would have been thrown away otherwise. But yea, terrible condition from what I remember, fumes everywhere, hard to breath and the water- as black as I can remember
where is it?
@@jordit2970 alang ship breaking yard in gujarat state of india
@@jordit2970 check it out on loney planet guide book
Excellent production. Congratulations to the whole team. A documentary for life! Very good!
These are the men that build a nation! My hats off to them.
my uncle was a ship yard welder in early 1980s , working at port of San Francisco California. then the ship yard business ended in 1987 due to high labor cost and polution. he is over 90 years old now.
Wow! I bet his knowledge & memories could make for a documentary to rival this one. 😊
This echo's of the days of the early U.S. when Factories, Mines, and other Industry treated citizens the same way. Children working 10 + hours a day. Men and Women used and tossed aside when they were too old or broken to keep up the pace. If you were hurt, tough $hit. Slowly unions and the reluctant Government had to do something. The saying never goes away. "If you do not learn from History.....
EpiDemic117 Then those companies have no business in that country whatsoever. That’s the only way they’ll comply. It’s expensive but it’s for the workers that build them up in the first place.
this could have been any european/american boomtown during industrialization.. just replace the ships with x industry
Actually, that industrial life was destroyed by machines, but not by government.
In first world countries peoples doesn't work 10+ hours because machines does. Automated lines and robots changed our work, life and whole world.
Business doesn't need hundreds of people on hard works because their work are more expensive and less productive than machine's. Robot doesn't need daily salary, weekends, holidays, vacations, health insurance and it's can work 24/7 with micron accuracy.
Eventually, third world countries like India also will get cheap machinery working power, and all that workers became too expensive to use. It's called the progress and it's unstoppable.
@@TheKingOfHalo If those companies pack up and leave, the workers have nothing. Yes, it sucks but the workers are there because it's their best option and the companies are there because the labor is cheap.
Every developed country has had to go through this kind of stage. As India develops, there will be more money, more options and conditions will improve.
Nobody would take this job in the US for $2 a day. Why? Because there are better ways to make money. You would have to pay more and reduce the dangers to get people in the US to do this job.
As India's economy develops, the same thing will happen. There will be more options for workers and the ship breakers will have to pay more and make it safer to get workers.
You can't just regulate your way to prosperity. If you try, it will just lock them out of world markets and into poverty forever. Unfortunately, they have to go through this stage of economic development.
very thought provoking,value of human life,poverty,very well done,excellent documentry
I wish there was a way to trade every person here in the US that hates this country with a person working at this shipyard. I hate how people don't appreciate how good we have it and bring one of these ship breakers family's over here and watch what they will do with that opportunity
youre very short sighted, the reason the US is so good is because of those people you say hate this country. The people that protested for better labor conditions and so forth. Simply because the country is better than most doesnt mean there is 0% room for improvement. If youre too lazy to make change dont knock people who are.
What an ignorant comment..
We can trade you.
Very well done documentary. This was hard to watch. It hurts to see what these men have to do , the work conditions, just to survive. I wish I was rich , I would help them all. No one should work under such harsh circumstances. I will never complain about my job again. 😔I pray for all these men and there family's.
Lisa Milito Holden
i work at a shipyard too, can you pray for me 🤗
Lisa Milito Holden wow you are dumb
ua-cam.com/video/RDhJOI45D9k/v-deo.html
you are rich if your from the west
What kinda job do u do? Come see my job will never complain again
Wow. I just can’t believe they are so grateful for everything they have. The story of the kid that lost his mom from a snake really got me where I live.
I visited in 1994 , climbed a rope ladder to have breakfast on a ship. Just fascinating, like a scene from Mad Max. Also the road into sells everything from the ship's. It was one of my goals when visiting India. Also visited Gardani beach in Pakistan. Yes I've always loved ship's. Sad to see them being destroyed.
Not destroyed, recycled. Just like cars, where it is now approaching 95% of a car is recycled.
So you have these old, dirty burning leaking worn out ships who's steel is 100% recycled, along with all the copper, aluminum, etc which is a massive energy savings verses starting from ore. The millions of tons of ore that would have to be mined to obtain the iron and other alloys that scraping these ships save.
@@scottpecora371 Somewhat unfortunate that they cannot recycle the health of their pittance paid workforce when their eyesight, lungs and limbs are irreparably damaged by working in extremely hazardous and dangerous conditions without reference to safety practices, procedures or PPE!
In truth, they could introduce and enforce a considerably high level of workers safeguards (in comparison to the zero amount they currently have) but they simply choose not to do so.
The owners couldn't care less about any of their workers, because there's always someone wanting a job!
The caste system has a lot to do with this too.
@@felixcat9318 It's simple: If they introduce all those safeguards then shipbreaking will shift to other countries with even lower standards, just like it shifted away from the USA and Europe to India and Bangladesh.
@@gautamnatrajan1990 This a race to the bottom, with a starting point slightly above the bottom...
The same story happened 40 years ago in China,and a lot of the people did this dangerous work not changed their life from poor to wealth since the works shifted to India.Good wishes to the workers :Be safe.
I have done dangerous construction work but holy shit .
Welcome to real life. lol, if they regulat ehte profession, owners will just let the ships rot.
i could see about a million safety violations incurred in the American workforce. these ppl would be shocked to see how strict we are with safety.
@@Billy_Darley That's why they aren't broken down here. It's too dangerous for the American workforce and would be too expensive to make safe. So we let less fortunate nations do it for us.
DO ya think there is aafety guy on the job??
@Brian Warner - What the hell is the point of this stupid comment?
I have torched scrap metal for 5 years in the U.S. I have cut almost everything imaginable. I wouldn't mind having a chance to be part of breaking a ship. Torch cutting is a skill and by what I have seen so far these guys are good at what they do.
It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it. I worked at Todd Shipyard in the summers of 1968-69 in Galveston, TX. It was a dirty, hot, miserable way to make my money for the next year's college expenses. Watching this video, I can still hear the sounds and smell the torches and smoke like it was yesterday.
Mr. Ken dam i worked as welder in machine shop, and loved every breath of smoke, dangerous metal being moved an water ballons thrown at each other during a shift. I loved every minute of my llow wage job. I learned so dam much💥🚂🚂👊🇺🇸🍼🍼
I worked at peck iron in Portsmouth Va , I know that smell. 30 years and I still remember. Horrible job, but somebody has to do it. Those without money will do it . They have no choice.
Eric have you been checked for metal poisoning. Maybe your sick.
@@ericblade8330 joking aside , don't sound like a good time either. Saw a few fab people at the scrap yard, they didn't last long. The boss quit hiring them.
I enjoy running a cutting torch and repairing/maintaining welding equipment. If I had to work at an Indian breakers I'd absolutely want to be a cutter because it beats manually moving all the steel cutters cut off!
Good evening I don’t normally comment on the things I watch on UA-cam but I fell compelled to thank the film makers for one of the most moving documentary’s I have ever watched thank you
This video changed my opinion about life...
This was hard to watch. Gave me another reason NOT! to complain about the littlest things. God bless those workers who risk it all to put food on their families tables. 🙏🏽🙏🏽
What about the ones who risk it all just to get drunk? Like the father of the kid whose mother died? The documentary doesn't show those ones.
RICK WAY, He didn't get drunk. Didn't you hear him? he said at the end of a long work day I must have 1. There are no drug stores, no doctors, no medicines for a simple headache. That fermented drink is probably the only thing close to a aspirin. Hell if I work 10 hours a day, 7 days a week in those hot oily contaminated condition, shit man I'd need at least 4 of those a day. And I don't even drink. GOD PLEASE BLESS THESE PEOPLE THAT MORE SADETY REGULATION COME THEIR WAY.
@@moemoes5989 I was referring to the orphan boy's father.
RICK WRAY, oh yeah I remember now. I'm sorry dude. I guess it's just a hard think to know that something this crazy go on. But it I had to, than I would work there. And the funny thing is RICK, I'm the type of worker who would only want the welder job. I would want to be on the ground carrying shit for $3 in a 16 hours day. I be risking my eye sight and all the other crazy for $7. Oh and by the way your job is just as fucking crazy. TV never show your real work. But I tried once. Soooo dark inside, I fell over and screamed for help, until other fire dudes carry me out. Done no more black smoke for me. I decided to fight crime instead. But thanks for what you do.
I could make their lives better.. or i could make them hundreds of times more hellish.. 😂😂😂
This is the best thing I'll watch all quarantine
I feel sorry for you
I live 20 km away from this place...believe me if this place shuts down my whole district will go bankrupt...as shipbreaking and re-rolling are only two industries that are left here
How it justify with the laborers they are dying due to lack of proper basic needs and safety? what about human rights?
@@dineshparmar6464
@Dinesh Parmar
Rather than collecting tax ,The govt dosent care about us .
If this industry collapse we will still die of hunger.
What are we supposed to do.
@@smokienigatha2537 If government doesn't care about us, then we should fight for our human rights.
If an NGO wants to help, the first, easiest and least expensive way would be to get basic PPE to those workers. It would also greatly boost productivity so anyone in Alang supervision reading this should consider it.
Eye protection makes it MUCH easier to cut fast and and accurately. (I have plenty of experience using cutting torches.) Gloves and boots make it easier to handle scrap and walk on dangerous surfaces. These could all be sourced in India and would create MORE jobs. Even if they don't care about workers the profit motive should interest the bosses.
Lack of training is stupid. Accidents slow production. No one benefits.
You're absolutely right. Unfortunately as far as the owners are concerned protective equipment and training are just an expense, can't do the math or just too stupid to understand or bother. Real shame.
It has to be a gradual cultural change. What do you do when they sell their PPE and claim that they work better without it? This has to come from the management paying their wages and has to be enforced: no PPE, no pay. That enforcement has to come from regulation, checks and fines. It's not as easy as you might think. As for training, training to do what exactly? They learn on the job. If they can't do it, there are plenty that can. It is not quicker to wear a harness with a two point attachment working at heights, or to rig safer alternatives. It slows you down but can save your life. Much quicker without, and if there is an accident, just forget about that person, barely any or no compensation to pay, humans are one of the best renewable resources in a place like this. Equipment needs regularly checking and maintenance so you need people and systems to do that. It's not cheap and will frequently get damaged from rough edged steel. You are using 1st world thinking in a 3rd world situation. I wouldn't condescend to call any of these people stupid. The only stupidity they have is in their religious faith; but that's probably something that helps them survive.
Just came back from India. Its the cast system. Workers are not worth those costs. Sad
Good intelligent point
The rich don't see their workers as human. They see them as less than cattle. Kill one, a thousand more are begging to take the dead man's job.
What you see here is free market, unregulated capitalism at it's peak. No unions. No worker's rights. Rich people free to make money off the sweat of the poor. Your grandfathers fought, literally fought, for better conditions than this and now you're giving them up to "the job creators." Make no mistake, grinding poverty is good for these bosses, it makes workers desperate. It's good for anyone who wants to underpay their workers, treat them like they are worth less because they weren't born into a rich family. We've had it so good for so long we forget what the unions have won for us, so we let it go. and so the gap between rich and poor is expanding again. This is the future for a right-wing world.
I'm sure they will make a similar doccumentry when they clean up Scotty's garage.
Stfu bwaigh
During my college days I used to work here. It's totally environmental disaster and working conditions of labour is pathetic. But since there are less opportunities to earn money people migrating from different states and living a life with really a lower standard of living. It sucks. People have no idea about how they being exploited. I worked here for daily wage which was around 3 US dollars a day.
Hope ur living better now
@@oniboi9629 Thanks buddy. I'm an assistant professor now in one state run University. Things are much much better now.
@@pradeepwegad2585 glad to know 😊
How did you manage to work here and study for college at the same time??
@@abooga8 I used to work there on Holidays and vacations. Not regular worker.
i feel so totch by the docomnteer,,,realy amazing work ,,thank you
Well made documenty film. Living near bhavnager never know of this paining situation , bad felling & at the same time my thought with people.
The sad fact is that in a country with the population that India has......life is cheap. When a worker is killed....there are easily 100 more people waiting in line for that job. That's life in the third world for you. Sad, but it's been going on as long as humanity has existed.
Its true sir . Am from india
Same story was for the building of the hoover dam.
God must really hate black people and nigga,s.
StormLaker1975 India is a rich Country ! Ask the Gov they have plenty !!$
MegaShanes1 Your as ignorant as they come !!!
An amazing film. It is hard to believe that people live and work (and die), in these conditions every day.
Really good documentary I had to right a paper for school upon this and wow I definitely taken what I have for granted
So because of all the regulations elseware - safety and otherwise.they came to India
Got it.
Yup, and it's disgusting. Shipping companies shouldn't be allowed to do this. The government's of these nations are also trying to push for environmental laws. I just hope that one day these ship breaking companies are forced to put these ships into dry docks to dismantle them. Instead of right on the beach.
A Lee push for environmental regulations? More like getting paid off by the steel recyclers.
These guys need jobs in India more than safety somewhere else. Leave them to choose. It's India not North Korea.
No one person has the choice of what life they are born into but after watching this I am fortunate to be living my life.
Yes, they do, read Seth Speaks, the eternal validity of the soul. This is something that every personality on the planet has been through or still has to go through. that doesn't mean that we just have to accept it though, we can still try to improve people's conditions and drive out greed which is what basically creates this.
Paul oneill you can improve, but you can’t still choose the life you are born into.
@@abdib5446 yes you do
Paul oneill why would anyone want to be born blind then?
@@abdib5446 For a variety of reasons.
As a marine engineer, I felt that so called human attachment to my vessel. Shit it breaks my heart seeing my ship being scrapped, for I called it once my home.
Phenomenal documentary. Music, narration, content. Perfect
Human Life in India is cheaper than the scrap
And so it should be over there.
@@Megasigggg who cares there are 1.3 billion of us.
@@MayankPrasad111 Jesus cares. Jesus came, died, rose from the dead, to save us from our sins, to have eternal life. Human life is NEVER cheap or scrap.
Unmanageable population of 135 crores would continue to be so
See the replay ,some fucker wants sell Jesus ,why doesn't he see the sufferings of many Christian poor countries ,their his Jesus is impotent ?
crazy seeing this, i work at a shipyard in the US and see alota of parts come from india!
I can draw a lot of parallels between this and the conditions we saw in The Jungle (stockyards of Chicago in the 1890s)
"So much trouble in the world"
and yet it is still wonderful...
that s the mystery of it
Who's here after beating Hardspace: Shipbreaker and watching the credits?
Thank you NFB for the quality of your subject matter, and film making. You tirelessly take on projects that other film groups are unable to fund.
The overall solution to this subject is an international law requiring the input the cost of the Shipbreaking into the price of the Shipbuilding. In essence the buyers have paid for the Shipbreaking up front, and can return the vessel to the builders who have already been paid to scrap it.
This will mean that consumers will pay more for their goods as the cost of the shipping will be passed onto products, it will also mean that Shipbreaking yards such as this one in India may cease to exist, and the livelihood of all those involved.
All the hard work these people do and not even basic living conditions are offered...clean water, showers, laundry facilities, housing ect. So Sad
It is so wrong...But even in UK industrial accidents were bad before legislation came in.. {Peoples of the Abyss by Jack London described London,England in about 1890. and how workers were crushed and lamed and thrown out, penniless. it needs government action, not greed and corruption.
Do not let this industry shut. Instead help the workers with new ship breaking machine.
That would make them unemployed. 3/4 of America's manufacturing jobs were eliminated by mechanization.
The problem is that is the machines would be expensive and the ships would simply just go where the labour is cheaper again. It's like you didn't listen to him when he explained why ship deconstruction is in India and not in the west.
@@adamlennon750 yeah like drugs. I will make more law for protection for the employee and they're family.
Reports like this make you realize how lucky you are to live a comfortable life with prospects and hope
15:25 walking through that ship that is beached, with complete silence around you. very eerie vibes
Your gorgeous....I am from nova scotia....had the chance to sneak on an old Russian radar ship that ended up into our harbour from a bad storm. The boat itself was rendered inoperable during the storm...but we managed to sneak into the marine slip and used a later to shimmy onto the boat from the wharf....was like stepping into a time capsule and everything was there Including canned Russian seafood ....very Erie.....
@@chads8720 relax chad
@@givemethatfilletfish agreed lol
@@chads8720 stop simping on the internet chad
Unbelievable. Those pilots and engineers of the the ship show more empathy towards the ship than the poor workers who risk life and limb to break the ships.
Greetings fella, i worked at smith dock shipyard ,south bank ,River Tees,,,,,, i was 16 yrs when i saw my first keel being layout, now you have shown the end The dismantling ,Health and Safety did exist,,,,, thank you once again
As a ships chief engineer when you spend years at sea and shipyard periods keeping them running you hate seeing all your care and worry come under the breakers torch
Why do you think a ships captain or engineer know anything about what really goes on at this ship wreckers yard? Did you know about Alang and the work conditions before you watched this documentary??
@@mikescudder4621 Everybody in the Industry knows that.
My heart breaks for you, God Bless you, may he keep you safe...
Such AMAZING people!
A wonderful documentary.........
Heart touching......
Contractors and owners sucking the blood out of poor man's lives and pushing them to desperate living conditions.
An eye opener ...definitely......to realize and introspect how lucky we are to have a place to live, good food to eat, good air to breathe, good water to drink and all the other luxuries of gadgets, furniture, so on....................still we see people around us, leading unsatisfied lives, blaming their fortune.
High time to do self-introspection.........
so i went from watching a documentary about billionaire yachts to this. i needed this for balance
Step 1. Take out a billion dollar loan. Step 2. Move there. Step 3. Live like god.
This is what will happen to those billionaire yachts eventually.
@@serioussam909 how meta of you
@@serioussam909 No, these luxury yachts will be maintained and exchange hands for quite some time, before being broken down where they are to reside, notice how there was no luxury cruisers or yachts there. only industrial ships, cargo ships, tankers, haulers etc. Yachts can be broken down much easier, cleaner and faster in western countries.
Instant thumbs up for the opening scene, quality documentary.
Your a left winged idiot +Kyee71, the opening scene was fucking shameful and the reason i will never spend 1 dime on these idiots!!
2:53 "my parents life in sheer poverty and hunger" yet they made multiple kids..
i cant feel sorry for stupid people, i cant!, the parents have a shit life, yet make kids?? cause logic??...
dont send money to third world countries!!! cause in the short term they will have food and will feel like kings, than fuck everything around them, and 5-10 years later you have a starving population worse than before!, IF a people cant help them selves, they have no right to be on the planet!, and the 10% rich countries on this planet cant support the 90% third world nations!, either they help them selves! or they die!, its survival of the fittest! NOT survival of the begging stupid idiots!, and once again, you can send billions of dollars to poor countries, and it will help them only short term!!, corruption, mismanagement and wars will make sure not even 5% of your money will go to ithe people that need it!, and iuf everything goes to them, than its only short term solution, not long term!, they need to grow food them selves, not have us ship it to them!, if the farms cant support the population than the population is too big ,or the farms to small!..
i thought you left winged idiots, already knew this? in the 1990s baind aid, and live aid!, billions of food were shipped to africa , and did it help?? yes short term.. and is africa now 20-30 years later, still the same shit hole, yes it is!!!, cause NOTHING has been planned long term how they should become, self sufficient!
S Dew Is it the kid's fault that they were born?
s dew u are dumb
Thought i was watching a james bond movie at the start there. Was waiting for a car chase scene
H.D B. Yeah, really. And couldn’t wait to get their children’s butts to work in a filthy, dangerous environment and aspire to still be poor. Apparently there is no compromise between full on exploitation of the people and environment and “left wingnuts.” There are some valid points in that rant, but absolutely no suggestions for alternatives. Typical Right Wing Lug Nut.
Ditto Boomerhgt! Wonderful documentary..Makes me want to roll up sleeves and help these poor workers achieve a better life somehow.. heartbreaking really!
After watching this, I have a new found sense of just how fortunate I was to be born where I was, heartbreaking seeing the poverty and choices these people live with and how they live with it, incredible
So incredable sad what people have to do to survive. My heart is breaking for these lives
I visited Alang in 1994, climbed the rope ladder and ate breakfast on a ship. Great to see. The road in is lined with goods from the ships. They should run tours there. It is fascinating.
you are lucky nothing blew up near you.
Sure. Let the plot owners make even more money. Notice the guys all standing round as the last ship comes in? They aren't hurting. They make a show for the camera and then scurry home to what the breakers would call a palace.
40 years ago this happened in England, Turkey and Italy and no one cared. In fact, these ships and the technology that came with them brought the people in Alang and everywhere else the wealth and progress that enabled them to be anything else than a farmer, priest or soldier, drive cars, buy in supermarkets and browse the internet. Maybe in the future, robots and machines will replace the workers to scrap the future ships, but where will the people then work?
Thank you NFB for the special documentary about the life of things and people.