Morena food factory manager arrested for death of 5 workers, owner missing: Cops

Five men - three of them were brothers - died after inhaling toxic gas at the factory in Dhanela area on Wednesday.

BHOPAL/MORENA: A manager of the processed food products factory in Madhya Pradesh’s Morena district was arrested on Thursday over the death of five labourers due to the suspected leak of poisonous gas on August 30, police said.

Morena: Rescue teams outside a food factory where five workers died after inhaling poisonous gas leaking from a tank on Wednesday (PTI File)

Sanjay Kushwaha, manager of Sakshi Food Factory which processes cherries and sugar-free chemicals used in food products, was arrested on charges of culpable homicide. The factory owner, Srajal Agrawal, is on the run.

“Kushwaha is being interrogated while the factory owner Srajal Agrawal is absconding. Investigation is still going on,” said Noorabad police station in-charge Malkhan Singh Chauhan.

Five men - three of them were brothers - died after inhaling toxic gas at the factory in Dhanela area on Wednesday. Police said one of the five went into one of the tanks that were being used at the factory and collapsed due to the toxic gas. The other four died trying to rescue him.

Three brothers, Ramnaresh Gurjar (40), Ramavatar Gurjar, (35), Dheer Singh Gurjar (30), residents of Tiktoli village and Ganesh Singh Gurjar (40), and Giriraj Gurjar (28), residents of Ghuraiya Vasari village in Morena died in the incident.

Unskilled workers in the factory were made to get down into the tank without oxygen or other safety equipment. The tanks are supposed to be cleaned regularly at 1.5-2 months frequency but this was not done. He added that there was no ventilation or exhaust fan in the hall where six tanks were situated in the factory.

(With input from PTI)