3 killed in Karnataka after stones fall on them in quarry, owner in dock

According to a police officer privy to the case, 12 labourers were working in the quarry when the incident occurred. One of the labourers present at the site said that the stones fell while the three victims were drilling in the quarry

Three people working in a quarry in Bisilavadi village of Chamarajanagara district were killed on Monday after stones fell on them from a height, a police officer familiar with the matter said.

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Police identified the deceased as Kumar (28), Shivaraju (35) and Siddaraju (27), all natives of Kagalavadi village in the same district. The quarry is owned by Renuka Devi.

Chamarajanagara rural police circle inspector Chikka Narasa Shetty said: “I have visited and inspected the spot. The tragedy occurred due to negligence of the stone quarry owner. We have registered a case against the owner and are investigating.”

According to a police officer privy to the case, 12 labourers were working in the quarry when the incident occurred. One of the labourers present at the site said that the stones fell while the three victims were drilling in the quarry. Kumar and Shivaraju died on the spot while Siddaraju, died on the way to the Chamarajanagara district hospital, said the official.

In a similar incident in March, three mining workers died after a large quantity of stone and soil caved-in at Madahalli in Gundlupete taluk in Chamaranagara district. After the incident, the state government and district administration had stopped all quarrying activity for two months, restarting it only after a safety audit was conducted by officials.

The district’s mines and geology department deputy director, B Nanjunda Swamy, said that mining activity was being carried out in violation of safety guidelines at the Bisilavadi mine in Monday, which led to the incident.

“After the Madahalli tragedy, officials inspected all the quarries and instructed miners to follow safety guidelines strictly and not to violate norms of mining. The mining owners submitted affidavits that they are not violating norms. But prima facie, (in the Bisilavadi case) it is confirmed that the miner violated norms and was doing mining in an unscientific manner,” Swamy said.

“A criminal case will be filed against the stone quarry owner and we will initiate steps to cancel the license,” he added.