Visakhapatnam crane mishap: Agonising wait at KGH mortuary for families of victims

CPI joint secretary JV Satyanarayana Murthy said no safety precautions were taken while conducting load bearing tests of the crane.
The heavy crane which collapsed at Hindustan Shipyard in Visakhapatnam on Friday. (Photo | Express)
The heavy crane which collapsed at Hindustan Shipyard in Visakhapatnam on Friday. (Photo | Express)

VISAKHAPATNAM: It has been an agonising wait for kin of the victims who died in Sunday’s crane crash incident at Hindustan Shipyard as there has been inordinate delay in post-mortem. Kin of the victims who were waiting for the bodies at the KGH mortuary are hardly able to speak.

Saturday’s accident brought tragedy to 10 families as most of them lost their sole breadwinners.

Jaganmohana Rao, uncle of one of the victims Chaitanya, who resides at Kancharapalem, said he brought him up along with his two sisters after the death of his parents.

He said he did not know about the incident until he saw it on the news. He said Chaitanya worked as a technician with Greenfield company.

Family members of another victim Peela Sivakumar, a contractor worker, were in a pensive mood at the mortuary. Sivakumar’s wife Suma, who came along with her sister Sridevi, said with the death of her husband she and her two children have become orphans.

She said her husband had been working as a contract worker for the last 16 years. She said her husband wanted to take leave as he was not well. But he went for duty never to return.

Satyasri Nagalakshmi, wife of another victim Venkataramana, said she came to the mortuary after she was informed of her husband’s death by their relatives.

“All my hopes and dreams were crushed after I heard the news,” she lamented.

Meanwhile, Tourism Minister Muttasetti Srinivasa Rao, MLAs, officials, leaders of Left parties and trade unions visited the shipyard and pacified the agitating relatives on Sunday.

INTUC leader Mantri Rajasekhar said the victims’ families were rewarded handsome compensation only at the insistence of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, and thanked the CM for the same.

However, Left party leaders alleged that it was a failure on the part of the management as it could not ensure safety of the workers.

CITU city president RKSV Kumar demanded payment of Rs 1 crore to the families of the deceased, and arrest of those responsible for the incident. “Many accidents are occurring in Visakhapatnam and the government has been very lenient and is not taking any action against the managements,” he added.

CPI joint secretary JV Satyanarayana Murthy said no safety precautions were taken while conducting load bearing tests of the crane.

“Since LG Polymers, there have been accidents at Sainor Life Sciences and Visakha Solvents. People are worried about industrial safety. Both the Central and State governments should take steps to prevent recurrence of such incidents.”

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The New Indian Express
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