In third of fatal accidents in a span of one months, Saurashtra Chemicals plant of Nirma Group in Porbandar where two persons died, Police has booked the safety in charge, production head and four engineers of the plant under IPC Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 287 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery) and 114 (abettor present when offence is committed)
The Fir is registered by Kamlabaug police station in Porbandar based on a complaint filed by Bharat Pandavadra, a helper working in the plant. Pandavadra, Hiren Agrawat, engineer Mehul Valiya, helper Jayesh Joshi and welder Pratap Odedra were injured after conveyor used to feed limestone to the kiln collapsed killing Agrawat on the spot and Odedra succumbing to his injuries later.
The accused named in the FIR were P Suresh, safety incharge at the Saurashtra Chemicals plant; AK Singh, head of the production division of the plant; Dipak Yoganandi and Manish Rathod, both senior engineers; Rashid Badi, production engineer; and Hiren Agrawat, a mechanical engineer who was also killed in the accident
Pandavadra said that Badi was responsible for safety of the team doing maintenance work while Agrawat and his senior Rathod were responsible for preventing any accident and supplying safety gears from their mechanical department. Yoganandi, Singh and P Suresh were responsible for ensuring overall safety in the plant.
The helper also stated in his complaint that the safety incharge and the engineers werre aware of the danger involved in the work . He also stated they had not been provided with any safety equipment other than safety helmet and boots.
After registering the FIR, police said they have started investigating the case.
Wednesday’s accident was third such incident in the Saurashtra Chemicals plant in less than a month starting with a collapsed conveyor system for coal, killing one on September 17.
Directorate of industrial safety and health (DISH) had ordered Saurashtra Chemicals to suspend operations until stability of structures in the plant was strengthened. During that maintenance work too, one more worker was killed on October 2.
