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33-year-old dies after falling from 133-feet at NTPC plant
The victim died after falling from a height of 133-feet while working at a towering chimney of NTPC power plant near Kudagi in Vijayapura district
A 33-year-old labourer died after falling from a height of 133-feet while working at a towering chimney of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) power plant near Kudagi in Vijayapura district, police said on Wednesday.
Kudagi police inspector H Yetish said: “The incident occurred at around 4pm on Tuesday. The labourer was outsourced by Indian Bags Private Limited, a company offering manpower services. The outsourcing company operates the production for NTPC and prima facie found guilty of lacking safety measures.”
He identified the victim as Kishan Kumar, a resident of Uttar Pradesh. He said that Kumar was engaged in a maintenance work when the incident took place. “We have registered a case under IPC 304A (causing death by negligence) and an autopsy was conducted at Vijayapura District Hospital. The body was handed over to the family members, and the investigation is ongoing,” he said, adding that the impact of the fall was so severe that his body was dismembered.
Following the incident, the workers launched protests demanding justice and compensation for the deceased’s family.
Indian Bags P Limited safety officer Gollapalli Venkataraju said: “The labourer was provided with a safety belt, but the cable, which had been damaged earlier, caused the incident. The company would provide compensation to the family members.”
HT tried reaching out to the NTPC but could not get a response on the matter.
On May 2, a similar incident was reported from Jindal Aluminium Factory, in the Dabaspete Industrial Area of Nelamangala Taluk in Bengaluru Rural District, resulting in the death of a labourer due to a LPG gas leak. The deceased, identified as Tousif Khan (23), hailed from Bihar.
The police said that during investigation it was revealed that production in-charge Amit Sarkar, safety officer Bangaru and other officials, including the factory management, failed to ensure the provision of adequate safety equipment for the workers.
A case has been registered against the Jindal officials under IPC Section 304A, police added.
