Ranchi, Oct 11 (PTI) Two persons died following gas exposure at ESL Steel plant in Jharkhand’s Bokaro district on Sunday, prompting the local administration to order a probe into the accident, an official said.
The accident occurred at ESL Steel Limited, Bokaro, a subsidiary of Vedanta Iron & Steel Limited (VISL).
“Two persons died in a mishap at ESL Steel Ltd Bokaro plant, and the district administration has ordered a probe into it,” the official said.
“Chas Sub-Divisional Magistrate Pranjal Danda asked Executive Magistrate Jaya Kumari and Factory Inspector Shivanand Laguri to visit the site and submit a detailed report to the district administration within 72 hours,” Bokaro Deputy Commissioner Ajay Nath Jha said.
Labour Superintendent Ranjit Kumar will ensure that adequate compensation is paid to the next of kin of the deceased as per law, Jha said.
The company, however, did not provide the details of the accident, saying it will conduct an independent investigation and take an appropriate step based on the findings.
“An unfortunate incident involving gas exposure occurred at the plant in which an executive of the company and a business partner engineer lost their lives,” an ESL spokesperson said.
Bokaro Superintendent of Police Nathu Singh Meena told PTI that the two deceased were identified as Sohan Mahato from Ramgarh in Bokaro and Samir Ansari from Dhanbad district.
The accident took place at the company worksite under the Siyaljori Police Station limits in Chandankiyari block of Bokaro, he said.
Siyaljori Police Station officer-in-charge Ranjit Prasad Yadav said the bodies of the two deceased will be sent for post-mortem examinations after the arrival of their relatives.
He also said talks were being held with the workers’ union and the company officials for payment of compensation.
State Chief Inspector of Factories, Manish Kumar Sinha, told PTI that the Bokaro factory inspector has been directed to visit the site, conduct a detailed probe and submit a report at the earliest.
“Prima facie, it appears that the deaths occurred due to exposure to carbon monoxide. However, we will wait for the probe report and post-mortem reports before making any comment,” Sinha said.
Accompanied by the plant technical team, the Bokaro deputy chief factory inspector and the Chas executive magistrate visited the site and declared it safe as per the current assessment, the steel maker said.
The activity being carried out at the time of the incident was part of a routine exercise, it said, adding that the cause has not yet been determined and is under investigation.
ESL Steel Ltd is an integrated steel producer in the long products category, with its manufacturing facility in Bokaro.
The company is currently operating at 1.5 MTPA crude steel capacity with upcoming expansion up to 3 MTPA, according to its website. PTI NAM ANB BDC NAM BDC
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