Hyderabad fire mishap: Case booked against scrap unit owner

Hyderabad: The Gandhinagar police have booked a case of negligence causing death and injuries against Sampath Kumar, owner of Shravan Traders, following the death of 11 migrant workers in the scrap warehouse and segregation unit. He was taken into custody. A case under sections 304A (Negligence causing death) and 337 (Negligence causing injuries) of the […]

Hyderabad: The Gandhinagar police have booked a case of negligence causing death and injuries against Sampath Kumar, owner of Shravan Traders, following the death of 11 migrant workers in the scrap warehouse and segregation unit. He was taken into custody.

A case under sections 304A (Negligence causing death) and 337 (Negligence causing injuries) of the IPC was booked and is being investigated.

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It is learnt that Sampath Kumar, a resident of Sharada Nagar at Dilsukhnagar had taken the land on lease from one Srinivas Reddy about five years ago and was running the unit.

Sources said the license of the unit had expired and it was still being run illegally.

“Preliminary investigation indicates sheer negligence on part of the owner. There are no fire safety measures at place or any exit for people to escape at the time of mishap. Industrial fire conditions have been violated,” Hyderabad Police Commissioner CV Anand said.

“We have initiated a probe into the incident and preliminary investigation indicates a short circuit from the switch board followed by a LPG leakage and blast. Many had inhaled the poisonous gas emanating from the burnt material,” he added.

As the workers could not find rented rooms nearby, they were made to stay on the two rooms on the first floor of the warehouse.

“They were working on the segregation and disposal of the scrap material on the ground floor during the day and stayed in the rooms on the first floor. Hardly anybody knew they were staying there,” Anand said.