MADURAI: Holding the Tangedco authorities accountable for failing to attend to a snapped electric wire, which resulted in the death of a farmer in 2011, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court recently directed the authorities to pay Rs 5 lakh compensation to the family of the deceased within a month.
Justice V Lakshminarayanan passed the order on a petition filed by G Kalimuthu, son of the deceased K Gurusamy of Mudukulathur in Ramanathapuram. According to Kalimuthu, on October 21, 2011, when Gurusamy went to the fields for work, he accidentally stepped on a low-tension electric wire which had snapped and fallen to the ground due to heavy wind and rain the previous day.
Gurusamy was electrocuted and died on the spot. Since the authorities did not provide any compensation despite repeated representations, Kalimuthu moved the court in 2022. The standing counsel for Tangedco claimed that they are only responsible for the maintenance of the electric pole, and cannot be held responsible for accidental snapping of the wire. They also pointed out that the petitioner has moved the court after a delay of 10 years.
However, the judge rejected the said contentions and observed that Gurusamy's death would not have occurred if the authorities had taken steps to inspect the wires before restoring electricity supply. Since the department grants Rs 5 lakh compensation to the victim's family in accidental electrocution cases, the judge passed the above order.