CHENNAI: In another tragic accident indicating poor maintenance of overhead power cables in Chennai, a 46-year-old auto driver was electrocuted to death after a high-tension line snapped and fell on him near the Kilambakkam bus terminus on Tuesday evening.
The incident happened just a month after a 17-year-old school student in Tiruvottiyur, walking back from tuition class, was killed because of an exposed underground electric cable.
The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) did not offer more details on what led to the snapping of the cable on Tuesday night. When contacted, officials said that a preliminary inquiry is under way. The Kilambakkam police have booked a case of unnatural death.
The deceased, Meghanathan Prabhu, after completing his work found that there were oil stains on his shirt and hands, a police source said. He went to a public tap nearby to wash the stains when the overhead high-tension cable coming from a transformer snapped and fell on him and killed him on the spot. Meghanathan is survived by his wife and a 17-year-old son, who is in college.
Compensation to be given to victim’s family after inquiry: TNPDCL officials
The cause for the snapping of line would be ascertained only after the inquiry, TNPDCL officials said. A decision on awarding compensation to the victim’s kin would be taken after inquiry, they added.
It can be recalled that after the death of the 17-year-old, the TNPDCL offered a solatium of Rs 10 lakh to the boy’s family.
Soon after the incident, TNPDCL MD J Radhakrishnan issued an order, constituting a committee under the Chief Engineer to look into recent incidents of damage to underground electrical cables caused during road cutting works.