Sanitation workers' deaths: 4 UP Jal Nigam officials suspended

Four officials of Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam have been suspended over the deaths of three sanitation workers who suffocated attempting to clean a sewage plant in Ghaziabad's Loni.

The district administration had sent its recommendation against six delinquent engineers after the workers suffocated to death inside a 40-feet deep main pumping station (MPS) they had climbed down for cleaning.

Threeworkers Bulbul, Maheshand Roshan(all in their late 30s) had died on July 8, after inhaling poisonous gas insidethe MPS during the sanitation work.

District magistrate Ritu Maheshwari had handed over the case for inquiry to Additional District Magistrate (finance and revenue) Sunil Kumar Singh.

In his investigation report, Singh held guilty the project manager SP Singh, assistant engineers Rameshwer Dayal and Anil Verma, and junior engineer Kapil Kumar. The UP Jal Nigam head office in Lucknow issued the suspension of the four officials based on the report of the Ghaziabad administration.

UP Jal Nigam and a private company had signed a contract for maintenance of the sewage plant for two years. The company allegedly did not provide the workers proper apparatuses to work under such a suffocating place.

The administration had paid a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each to the kin of the three deceased.

An FIR was registered against the company. Later, charges for violation of The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, and SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were also added.