TIRUPATI: One worker died and two others fell unconscious after they inhaled a toxic gas in a manhole at Vaikuntapuram in Tirupati on Wednesday. The condition of the two men - identified as Lakshman and Mahesh - is critical.
They are currently being treated at the SVIMS and SVR Ruia hospitals, respectively. The deceased, identified as A Arumugam (32), was a resident of Puttur mandal. He was a driver of Tirupati Municipal Corporation and operated sewage cleaning vehicles.
Civic officials said that Mahesh, a sewage cleaner, entered into a newly constructed manhole to remove gunny bags that were placed to prevent sewage from entering into the manhole at the time of its construction. Soon after he removed them, he inhaled the gas and collapsed.
In a bid to rescue Mahesh, Armugam jumped into the manhole and fell unconscious as he inhaled the gas. A bystander, Lakshman, went next to help the two workers, but collapsed too. Fire services personnel and locals pulled them out of the manhole and shifted them to a hospital. Armugam died while undergoing treatment.
A senior MCT official told The New Indian Express that three workers were asked to clean the manhole on the Vaikuntapuram arch road using a sewage machine. As the mouth of the manhole couldn’t be opened due to air pressure, the two workers tried to clear the blockage channel at a newly constructed manhole on the same line in a bid to release the pressure.
Stating that MCT has distributed safety gear kits to all its workers and also conducted training sessions on how to use the kits when they go inside manholes to clean them, the official claimed that many workers do not wear them at work as they feel the gear,which includes gloves and boots, causes inconvenience.
“The work started around 11:30 am, and the incident happened 30 minutes later. In less than 30 minutes, the police and fire safety personnel rushed to the spot and shifted the three individuals to the hospital.
The workers were not wearing any protective gear when they went inside the manhole,” an eyewitness, Malleswari, told The New Indian Express.
A law banning manual scavenging in India was passed in 1993, preventing an individual or a local body from employing a person to clean human excreta from insanitary latrines, open drains and any other such spaces.
Two MCT officials suspended
The civic body has announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased and ordered officials concerned to bear the total treatment cost of the two individuals.Following the incident, MCT Commissioner Anupama Anjali suspended an assistant engineer, Suresh, and a ward secretariat amenities secretary, Daya. The commissioner also ordered a detailed probe into the incident.
Meanwhile, a show-cause notice has been issued to the head of the engineering department and superintendent engineer T Mohan, directing him to submit a report on the incident within 24 hours. The civic body chief further appointed additional commissioner Sunitha as the investigation officer and directed her to conduct a detailed probe into the incident.
She further asserted that an elaborate discussion will be taken up during the council meeting for procuring machinery for executing sewage works. The MR Palle police have registered a case under CrPC Section 174, based on a complaint lodged by the deceased's elder sister.
