Jajpur/Chadheidhara: Two persons including a stone quarry owner were killed in separate mishaps at a stone quarry on Baghua hill and at a crusher unit in Saroi under Dharmasala tehsil in Jajpur district, police said Sunday.
With the latest casualties, the death toll in the stone quarries in this district rose to 14.
In the first incident, a stone quarry owner sank to death at a granite quarry on Baghua hill under Jenapur police limits late Saturday night. The deceased was identified as Bidyadhar Sahoo, 50, of Anjira village of Patia panchayat under Jenapur police limits.
“Sahoo joined labourers to push down the rocks suspended from the hill when he slipped his legs and died. He fell down from the hill and died on the spot,” locals said.
Police sent the body for post-mortem and started an investigation. Sahoo and others allegedly carried out work without safety gears.
In the second incident, Chaitanya Samal, 45, a labourer, was killed after a Haiwa hit him from rear when he was working atop a crusher unit. He was rushed to Dharmasala health centre where doctors pronounced him dead.
Sources said Sahoo had taken the quarry on Baghua hill under Dharmasala tehsil on lease and was extracting granites.
The incident occurred after the labourers carried out blasting on the hill in the presence of Sahoo late Saturday night. Later, Sahoo joined the labourers to push the rocks to the ground. However, he slipped his legs and died.
Observers claimed hundreds of illegal stone quarries run from Dankari, Rahadpur, Bichhakhandi, Anjira, Lunibar Baghua and Kusunpur hills under Dharmasala tehsil in connivance with some influential ruling party leaders.
The ruling party leaders in exchange of monthly cuts provide cover to the quarry owners from the trouble of forest, police and revenue officials. As a result, casualties have become a regular affair here during last one-and-half years.
The irregularities came to the fore with the death of Dharanidhar Tarai at a quarry in Maulabhanja reserve forest October 24, 2016. A day after Gunanidhi Mallick, a labourer, was crushed to death at a quarry in Balarampur reserve forest October 25, 2016. Since then one labourer after another has died.
The district administration is yet to wake up to reality and take action against errant stone quarry owners. When contacted, Jenapur IIC Susant Kumar Das said action will be taken against the guilty after completion of a probe.
