Families of Vizag steel plant blast victims to get up to Rs 1.72 Crore compensation: Pawan Kalyan

Pawan Kalyan announced compensation of Rs 1.72 crore for families of regular employees and Rs 45.75 lakh for contract workers killed in the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited blast, along with jobs, ex gratia and support measures

Visakhapatnam: Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Tuesday said that the families of regular employees killed in the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (Vizag Steel Plant) accident will receive a compensation of Rs 1.72 crore each, while those of the contract staff would be paid Rs 45.75 lakh each.

A severe explosion erupted at the Steel Melt Shop-1 of the plant during casting operations involving molten steel on Monday evening, killing eight workers and injuring six others. The blast triggered a massive fire.

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The Deputy CM said the compensation package would include all statutory and terminal benefits due to the deceased employees. “From the government’s side, the families of deceased regular employees will receive compensation of Rs 1.72 crore each, while those of the contract staff would be paid Rs 45.75 lakh each. In addition to their entitled terminal benefits, the families of the deceased will also receive an ex gratia payment of Rs 10 lakh,” Kalyan told reporters.

He said one member from each bereaved family would be provided employment, while workers who sustained severe injuries would receive compensation of Rs 10 lakh each.

He added that RINL would bear the entire cost of treatment for the injured workers. The deputy CM further said that the education of the children of steel plant employees would continue uninterrupted and that the same benefit would also be extended to the children of the deceased workers.

According to Kalyan, the kin of the deceased would be allowed to stay in the steel plant quarters until the date on which the deceased employee would have attained superannuation.

Family members presently residing outside the township would also be permitted to stay in the steel plant quarters if they wished, he added.

The Deputy CM said a three-member committee had been constituted to investigate the accident. They would examine whether safety protocols were followed and safety audits were conducted.

He further noted that it would not be appropriate to draw conclusions before the inquiry was completed. Kalyan assured that the government would stand by the families of the deceased workers and those undergoing treatment following the accident.

Earlier, he inspected the accident site at the steel plant and enquired with officials and workers about the circumstances that led to the mishap. He also visited the injured at the hospital.

Workers told the Deputy Chief Minister that the accident was caused by human error and alleged that negligence on the part of the management and deficiencies in maintenance led to the deaths of their colleagues, a release from Janasena quoting them said.

Meanwhile, a family member of one of the deceased workers, Ramana, claimed that the latter was recently posted to a section at Steel Melt Shop-1 where the accident took place. “The tragedy might not have occurred had he remained in his earlier posting,” the relative told a news channel.

The relatives of the deceased workers claimed that no senior management officials visited them in the hospital following the accident.

Discussions should take place between the management and workers’ unions to address concerns arising from the accident, they said. Responding, an official said, senior RINL management and directors have been engaged in response and coordination efforts following the accident, with teams deployed at hospitals and other locations to assist the injured and support affected families.

According to an official from RINL, ministers and senior representatives visited hospitals during the day to review the condition of the injured and oversee relief measures.

“The CMD, directors and officials have been on the ground since the morning, coordinating relief measures and visiting hospitals. At this stage, the priority is assisting the injured and supporting the affected families,” the official told PTI.

Multiple teams were also monitoring developments and coordinating assistance on the ground, the official added.