More than 50 countries have banned asbestos products but India cannot get enough. It imports the mineral from Canada, risking a future health crisis.



Asbestos products have a deadly reputation.

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Inhaling asbestos fibres can lead to a slow and painful death.



But in India, asbestos illness is under-diagnosed and mostly unrecognised.



And with the proliferation of factories making asbestos products, India is on the cusp of a devastating health crisis.



Workers have little safety equipment and if they contract a respiratory disease or cancer, few are paid compensation.



However, India cannot get enough of the product and it is a first-world nation that is supplying it.



Canada will not use asbestos itself but it is selling it by the shipload to India.

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Source: Al Jazeera