Two daily wage workers, a 28-year-old man and his sister-in-law, were buried alive when a mound of earth collapsed on them at an under construction house in Sector 56 on Wednesday evening. The house owner and a contractor have been booked, police said on Thursday.
The deceased were identified as Malkhan Ahirwar and his sister-in-law Guddo Devi (40), both natives of Galan village in Chattarpur district of Madhya Pradesh. The incident took place around 4.30pm when they were digging for a basement, police said, adding that the victims were rushed to a hospital, but were declared brought dead on arrival.
Assistant commissioner of police (Sadar), Aman Yadav, said that five labourers were working on a 300 square yard plot in Block D of Sector 56 , which is located near a private hospital. “Two of the labourers were digging in the basement, around seven feet below the ground level, when a huge heap of mud from the retaining wall caved in and trapped them underneath,” he said.
Three other labourers who were working near the basement survived, said police.
{{/usCountry}}Three other labourers who were working near the basement survived, said police.
{{/usCountry}}The bodies were handed over to the family members after an autopsy on Thursday evening.
Rajkumar Ahirwar, Malkhan’s brother who works as a painter in the city, said he had spoken to his brother on Wednesday morning when he told him that there were no safety measures at the site. “I had asked him not to work any longer at that site, but he said the contractor would not release the payment for the entire week if he refused. The contractor had threatened to block the labourers’ payments if they refused to work in the basement,” he said.
Malkhan was earning ₹700 per day and was saving for his wedding which was planned in November this year. He was also supporting his younger brother who lived in Delhi, said his relatives.
Family members alleged that the negligence of the contractor and the house owner led to the incident.
Sunil Ahirwar, Guddo’s son who works as a driver in Noida, said that his father was away at their village and his mother was working at the site. “My mother was unhappy working at the Guurgram site. She had even told me that digging basement could take her life as there were no safety measures in place. The wall which collapsed was about 15 feet tall,” he said.
According to police officials, the contractor had informed police and had taken both the labourers to the nearest hospital in Sector 56.
A case was registered against the house owner and the contractor, based on the complaint filed by Rajkumar, under sections 304A (culpable homicide) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code at Sector 56 police station.
The officials said the contractor and house owner are at large. “We have formed teams to arrest them. Further investigation in the case is going on,” ACP Yadav said.