Bihar’s Makhana Industry Exposed | Child Labor & Exploitation Reality

This ground report from Bihar’s Makhana industry by Witty Chokha reveals the dark reality behind India’s premium “superfood.” Beneath the shine of packaged makhana lies a world of poverty, heat, and human suffering.

Workers including women and children as young as ten begin roasting and processing makhana from 1 AM till afternoon, surrounded by blazing furnaces and toxic smoke. Their hands are blistered and blackened, yet most earn barely ₹3000 a week. For many, this three-month seasonal work is the only means of survival before they return to brick kilns or daily wage jobs.

The report also highlights broken promises of government welfare schemes, lack of education for children, and unsafe working conditions.

While cities celebrate makhana as a “healthy snack,” this story shows the human cost of Bihar’s forgotten laborers the ones who burn their nights to keep India’s luxury food industry alive.