Shahapur mishap: Agitated relatives staged protest at hospital

The relatives and family members said not a single body will be moved for final rites from the hospital unless they get written assurance from the VSL company that appropriate compensation will be paid.

Shahapur

Relatives of labourers killed in the girder collapse mishap at Shahapur argue with VSL company officials at Shahapur sub district hospital on Tuesday afternoon in Thane district. (Praful Gangurde/HT PHOTO)

Agitated by the tragic death of their kin, the relatives of 10 labourers staged a protest at Shahapur sub district hospital morgue and refused to claim the bodies till VSL India Ltd, the engineering company which operated the 700 metric tonne girder launcher, gave them a written assurance of a compensation.

The girder launcher collapsed a few minutes before midnight on Monday when a 28-member team of VSL was deployed at the construction site where girders were being laid. Rescue teams had successfully removed 17 bodies out of which 10 were labourers, from the wreckage and brought to Shahapur sub district hospital by 10 am on Tuesday.

The workers belonged to Bihar, UP, West Bengal, Uttarakhand and their relatives were agitated with VSL company officials at the hospital that they were not categorically declaring the amount of compensation. The officias tried to explain that the exact compensation amount would be calculated later as per the experience and dues of those dead, and that’s why they will not be able to name an amount. The relatives had a heated argument with the officials. The Shahapur police officials rushed to the spot and calmed the nerves of angry relatives. The relatives and family members said not a single body will be moved for final rites from the hospital unless they get written assurance from the VSL company that appropriate compensation will be paid.

The police called the VSL company representatives and they announced the official assurance before the relatives and family members. Following this, the company arranged 15 to 20 ambulances to carry the bodies to their respective native states for final rites. They will receive the compensation to their nominee’s account after completing their paperwork as per norms, the officials said. The relatives and family members gathered at the hospital refused to believe the oral assurances and demanded a written statement and finally, the company has given the written assurance to them, officials said.

The police said that after officials promised them to give it in writing, some of the bodies were despatched by road in ambulances.

Anant Parad, Senior Police Inspector, Shahpur police station, “Prima facie, a case has been registered against the company under 304 (Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder). Further investigation is on.”

Shahapur Tahsildar Komal Thakur said, “The state government had announced ₹5 lakhs each to the deceased family members and ₹2 lakh compensation was announced by the central government.”