South Asia's hazardous ship graveyards
Indian and Bangladeshi workers face precarious conditions while dismantling decommissioned ships. The lack of environmental and safety standards reduces the costs associated with the work, but jeopardizes workers' lives.
Left alone
The picture shows a young laborer in Chittagong, Bangladesh. About a quarter of all workers are younger than 18. But South Asian governments look away, ignoring the workers' plight and the environment.
Exploited
Young people and children get lower pay, although they often work longer than their older colleagues.
Unprotected
Workers are not given helmets, safety shoes or goggles. Serious injuries are a frequent occurrence.
Burnt
Sheju is in a hospital in Chittagong. He is recovering from the severe burns he suffered when a fire broke out while working in a ship.
Mutilated
Edris, a former worker, lost his leg as a result of his work at the ship-breaking yard.
Poisoned
It's not just the workers who suffer. The soil and groundwater in a wide area around the shipyards are contaminated with heavy oil, lead and dozens of other toxins.
Irreversible
The destruction of the ecosystem is so widespread that agriculture or fishing is hardly possible in these areas anymore.
Immigrated
In the Indian town of Alang, the world's largest ship-breaking yard, almost all workers are migrants from other parts of northern India. Since 2009, they have dismantled over 2,600 ships.
A frugal life
The workers live in tiny huts, which have neither electricity nor running water supply.
Fascinated
The ship-breaking sites are attracting not just workers. Even tourists are coming to photograph the morbid beauty of the wrecks.