Siddarth Sethia
Eight days after two workers fell into a sewage treatment plant (STP) tank in Varthur,search teams have recovered body parts believed to be those of the missing worker, while efforts to trace the remaining body continue.
The incident occurred on June 19 at around 6.10 pm at a Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) sewage treatment facility in Belagere under the Varthur police station limits.
Three labourers were carrying out maintenance work near the treatment tank when the accident took place.
While the body of Akilan Mohan (30),a native of Tamil Nadu was recovered during rescue operations on Saturday,only body parts,including a hand,of the second victim,Akhilesh (30)from Bihar, were recovered on Thursday.His body is yet to be fully traced, police said.
According to officials,the workers were repairing three gates inside the wastewater treatment system when they reportedly lost balance and fell into the nearly 40-foot-deep tank.
Another worker,Karthik,managed to escape and alerted authorities.
Personnel from the Fire and Emergency Services Department and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have continued search operations for the eighth consecutive day.
Officials said toxic gases, poor visibility and strong water currents inside the tank have severely hampered rescue efforts.
The state government has announced compensation of ₹10 lakh each for the families of the deceased workers.
However,activists and labour rights groups have demanded that the compensation be increased to ₹50 lakh.
During a silent protest held outside the STP on Thursday, members of the Karnataka Information Rights Activists State Committee submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister DK Shivakumar through BWSSB Chairperson Manjula,IAS,urging the government to provide ₹50 lakh compensation to each bereaved family and expedite recovery of the second body.
The memorandum stated that the tragedy had raised serious concerns over worker safety, supervision and accountability at BWSSB-operated facilities.
It also sought medical, legal and administrative assistance for the victims’families and demanded strict action against officials found responsible for lapses.
Advocate T.Narasimha Murthy,who participated in the protest, said that under legal provisions relating to sewer and hazardous cleaning deaths,compensation should be substantially higher than the amount announced by the government.
“These workers operate in extremely hazardous conditions,often without adequate safety equipment.
No compensation can replace a lost life,but accountability must be fixed on both BWSSB and the contractor.Authorities must explain exactly what led to this tragedy,”he said.
The activists have also called for a comprehensive inquiry into the incident,immediate fixing of responsibility on erring officials and strict enforcement of safety protocols to prevent similar accidents in the future.
