Workers die of asphyxiation in Mohali: Negligence FIR lodged against real estate firm

Incident took place at the Sector-62 site where a mall is coming up; DC orders probe, seeks separate report from MC commissioner

A day after a municipal sanitation worker and a labourer died of asphyxiation after descending into a sewer in Sector 62, police on Monday booked the management of the real estate project where the incident took place.

22-year-old Harpal had fainted after descending into a sewer to clean it; Gagan went down to help him, but also fell unconscious. (HT Photo/for representation only)

Deputy commissioner Girish Dayalan has also ordered a probe into the matter and sought a separate report from the municipal corporation (MC) commissioner.

The deceased – Harpal, 22, was a contractual sanitation worker from Mohali, and Gagan, 30, a construction labour hailing from Bihar.

According to police, Harpal was sent to the Sector-62 site, where Home and Land Planners (HLP) Group is building the HLP Galleria mall, after MC received a complaint to clean the sewage pipeline.

Around 6pm, as Harpal went down the sewer to carry out cleaning work, he fell unconscious. Working nearby, Gagan volunteered to take a water bottle to Harpal and help bring him up. But when he climbed down three-four steps using a ladder, he also fainted.

Police reached the spot and rescued the two men with the help of a JCB machine. They were rushed to a private hospital, where they were declared brought dead.

An MC official said Harpal was wearing safety gear, while Gagan was not.

“We have registered a case under Section 304-A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code against the management of HLP Galleria mall where the sewer cleaning was to be done,” said Rajesh Kumar, station house officer (SHO) of Phase 8 police station.

After post-mortem examination, the bodies were handed over to the family members.

Deputy commissioner Dayalan said, “I have ordered a probe and asked the sub-divisional magistrate concerned to submit the report at the earliest. MC commissioner will prepare a separate report. Strict action will be taken against those guilty.”

On the firm’s part, Pardeep Bansal, director of HLP Group, said, “Our project has nothing to do with the incident as the manhole is outside the site. The sanitation worker was employed by MC. We will take up the matter with the senior superintendent of police.”