Bhubaneswar: The bodies of three missing labourers were Saturday recovered from the debris of a collapsed iron structure on the premises of a cement plant in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, after a 36-hour rescue operation, police said.
The deceased have been identified as Susanta Rout (58), Ranjit Bhol (24) and Dashrath Patra (42), who were engaged by a contractor at the captive power plant in Rajgangpur, they said.
The workers were trapped after a coal hopper – a big iron structure used for storing large quantities of coal – collapsed Thursday evening, said Brijesh Kumar Rai, DIG, Western Range (Rourkela).
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The coal hopper was operated by a third-party vendor engaged by Dalmia Cement, the company had earlier said in a statement.
Over 60 other workers were safely rescued on the day of the accident, officials said.
Personnel of the fire service department, Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) and local police teams carried out the rescue operation.
Following the incident, the government barred Dalmia Cement from operating the coal bunker and connected circuit of the power plant with immediate effect.
In the order, the additional director of factories and boiler said that a similar incident had taken place in the cement plant November 26 but there were no casualties
It also recommended a 10-point safety norm for the cement plant.
In a statement, Dalmia Cement said, “We are extending full support to the bereaved families in close coordination with the district administration, including education, livelihood and compensation.”
“We express our heartfelt condolences to the families of the three workers who lost their lives in this incident,” it said.
The statement said the company is committed to the safety and well-being of workers, and employees.
District Collector Manoj Satyawan Mahajan visited the plant and spoke to company officials.
Meanwhile, the demonstration that was underway outside the factory gate ended, said the inspector-in-charge of Rajgangpur Manas Ranjan Pradhan.
“The demonstration is over at this moment. They left sometime after the three bodies were recovered,” he said.
The company and the district administration are discussing the compensation to be given to the deceased, he added.
PTI
