Labourer dies after falling into sewer manhole in Santacruz East, another injured

MUMBAI: A 47-year-old labourer died and his co-worker was injured after the two entered a manhole while cleaning an internal drainage line of a private building in Santacruz East on Monday morning

MUMBAI: A 47-year-old labourer died and his co-worker was injured after the two entered a manhole while cleaning an internal drainage line of a private building in Santacruz East on Monday morning. The accident occurred at around 11 am.

Labourer dies after falling into sewer manhole in Santacruz East, another injured

According to the BMC and police, the two men had been engaged by members of Bhavya Niketan Housing Society on Golibar Road No 8 to clean the choked internal sewer line. Neither worker was a BMC employee and the civic body had not been informed about the work, the police said.

According to the police, the workers opened a manhole outside the society and lowered themselves into it to carry out the cleaning. They were allegedly hit by the poisonous gases and, losing consciousness, fell inside. They were subsequently rescued by the Mumbai Fire Brigade and taken to the nearby V N Desai Hospital, where Santosh Kashte, 47, was declared dead. Ajay Thakur, 30, was admitted to the MICU and was reported to be stable.

A BMC official said that CCTV footage showed the workers removing the grill and opening the manhole. “We will submit everything to the police,” he said. “We will also check with the society whether they asked the workers to open it. We do not exactly know why it was opened, as this was internal work being carried out by the society, which had nothing to do with the manhole.”

The building’s security guard, who was an eye-witness to the incident, told HT that the contractor, Vilas Pawar, and the two workers arrived in the morning after sewage began spilling out because of the choked line. According to him, Pawar suggested that cleaning the line through the manhole would be easier, and asked the workers to open it. Kashte opened it and went in, he added, but fell inside. Thakur tried to rescue him but also fell in.

A BMC official said the workers may have lost consciousness after being exposed to toxic gases. “Opening a manhole is not easy and requires expertise. We are also trying to understand how it was opened,” he said.

The Vakola police have registered an FIR against Pawar for allegedly causing death by negligence. No arrests had been made till Monday evening.

“Members of the society had called the workers to clear the internal sewer line. They opened the BMC manhole outside the society and fell inside while cleaning the drainage line,” said Navnath Ghuge, senior police inspector, Vakola Police Station.

The police are investigating whether adequate safety precautions were followed and who was responsible for allowing the workers to enter the manhole. A police officer said a case would also be registered against the society members for allegedly assigning the work to private workers without informing the BMC.

Thakur, originally from Madhya Pradesh, who was being treated in the MICU, told HT that he remembered cleaning the sewer line but could not recall what happened afterwards. He also said this was not the first time he had opened a manhole and had been doing so regularly. A doctor said he would be kept under observation for 24 to 48 hours.

The deceased Kashte used to work at a factory called ‘Switch’, which later shut down, said his elder sister, Sandhya Lale, 52. After the factory closed, he worked as a daily wage labourer, taking up whatever work was available. His childhood friend, Sudhir Chaudhary, claimed that Kashte was a heavy drinker and would take up difficult and random work to earn quick money for his alcohol. He also alleged that Pawar was under the influence of alcohol when the accident occurred.

Kashte’s relative said that he was estranged from his wife and three children and had been living separately at the Navjeevan slum settlement where he also grew up.

Attempts to reach out to representatives of Bhavya Niketan housing society were unsuccessful.