The contractor has been blacklisted by the BWSSB.
The family of a Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) contract worker who died due to negligence has been compensated Rs 12 lakh by the civic body. Officials said that the family members will also get compensatory jobs.
Parmeshwara, Chief Engineer (West) said, “We took all necessary safety precautions. What happened was very unfortunate. When he jumped in the pit, the slab fell on him. The depth of the pit was only three feet, so the fact that this mishap happened is unfortunate.”
Chalapathi, 47, from Kolar district died while laying an underground drainage pipe. He was removing soil from the pit when a cement slab fell on him, trapping him inside the pit. The other worker, Muniyappa, 40, also got trapped inside the pit and got injured in his waist and hands.
The worker’s father lodged a complaint at the Kengeri police station on Nov 26 citing negligence of the contractor. An FIR was filed by the police under Section 304(A) and the contractor for the project, Devaraju has been called for further investigation. Parmeshwara said that the contractor has been blacklisted.
Venkateshwaralu, labour expert, National Safety Council, said, “In this case, they should have made sure that there was a slope on either side so that loose soil does not fall down. They should have also made some wooden planks.” He also said that the lack of adequate safety measures is due to involvement of multiple contractors. “The contractor gives the job to a sub-contractor. Since the work is given on sub-contract, the money given to him is less. So, they do not follow any safety rules,” he added.
