Delhi: Forced to manual scavenge, 2 die in Jasola
A resident hired the two deceased to clean a septic tank at his house and allegedly forced them to manual scavenging
Two men died after they fell unconscious inside a septic tank in southeast Delhi’s Old Jasola village, said police on Friday. A resident, who absconded from the scene, hired the two deceased to clean a septic tank at his house and allegedly forced them to manual scavenging after the desludging vehicle malfunctioned, police said. They further mentioned that the men died of asphyxia due to the poisonous gasses released from the septage inside the tank.
Locals reported the incident to the Sarita Vihar police station at around 1 pm. The deceased were not provided with a mask, gloves, ladder or any other safety equiments to clean the septage, said the police. Deputy commissioner of police (DCP) (south east) Rajesh Deo said: “After receiving the call, officers rushed to the spot and identified the resident as Iqbal Singh.” The police added that Singh forced the two workers to enter the septic tank and remove the waste manually.
“We found that initially, the men were tasked to clean the tank with the help of a tractor machine and pipe (desludging vehicle). Inquiry revealed that the waste was sucked out of the tank through a pipe into the tractor tank at least twice. However, during the third time, they could not remove the waste as one of the valves was not fitting on the tractor tank,” added Deo.
A senior police officer said: “The men entered the tank and soon fell unconscious whilst inside. Singh did not call the police and left the spot with his family. Others in the area tried helping the men but could not step inside the tank due to the poisonous gasses.” DCP Deo added, “The other facts of the case are also being verified. Singh (the accused) is still at large. We are in the process of registering a case against him.”
The Delhi fire services were called in, following which a fire team helped rescue both of the deceased with the help of ropes, ladders and masks, said the police. The men were rushed to the hospital where doctors declared them dead. Only one of the deceased has been identified, said a senior officer aware of the case , adding, “They are local labourers and workers. Since Singh is absconding, we do not know their identities. They were hired on the same day of the incident.”
One of the deceased has been identified as Rajprakash Singh, 60, who lived with his family in Molarband Extension, said the police. Inquiry revealed that he was the driver of the desludging vehicle but was still compelled to clean the tank. The police are now trying to identify the other deceased who was either a sanitation worker or a daily wage labourer according to them.
A similar incident took place on May 14 when a 32-year-old man had died and another was left injured whilst cleaning a sewer at a popular mall in Rohini sector 10. Akin to this case, the two men were allegedly pressed to clean a sewer at the mall without safety equipment. Locals tried to rescue them but one of them succumbed to the injuries caused inside the tank. Police said that they arrested three men in connection with the earlier case – all of whom were employed in the mall.