In yet another tragic incident, four persons died of
asphyxiation after they went into a sewage manhole at Ayyappa Society on
Saturday evening. While the first three were workers went in to clean
it, it was unclear whether the fourth person was also a worker or a
passerby who went to help. An ambulance worker who volunteered to
retrieve the bodies also fell inside, but was later rescued.
According
to officials of the Madhapur police station, the incident took place
between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. It was later also found that the agency which
had taken up the work had engaged the labourers without taking
permission from the water board. It also did not take any precautionary
measures before sending the workers into the sewer main.
The
names of the four persons who died were believed to be Srinivas,
Satyanarayana, Nagesh and Gangadhar. The driver of the 108 ambulance
worker was identified as Chandu. According to an official from the
HMWSSB, the work at the sewer main was sub-contracted to one Loka Reddy.
A police source said that the workers were asked to take up the work
without any supervision.
The police official said
that the Madhapur PS and the Fire department were informed that four
persons had gone into the sewer and had not come out, at about 5 p.m.,
after which officials rushed to the spot. “Ambulances were also called,
and Chandu decided to go in. The rope tied around his waist somehow was
undone and he also fell inside,” he said.
The
operation to remove the four bodies and to rescue Chandu ended only
about 6.30 p.m., after which the latter was taken to Maxcure hospital in
Madhapur. According to the police, the workers lived in the slums with
their families behind the Osmania University campus. Even till 9.30
p.m., no case was registered, but cops said that relatives of the
deceased would lodge a complaint with the Madhapur police.
Probe launched
The
HMWSSB launched a high-level inquiry headed by M. Satyanarayana,
Executive Director, HMWSSB, into the mishap at Ayyappa Society.
According to a press release, as part of the JNNURM works, the sewer
main was laid by the contractor. However, the workers who had gone into
the sewer without any sort of protection died of suffocation due to the
poisonous gases in the manhole.It was found that the HMWSSB had
blacklisted the agency earlier for similar negligence at Madhapur.
Though
a notice was given to the agency, it did not respond. The HMWSSB would
pay an ex gratia of Rs.2.5 lakh each to kin of the deceased.
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