Indore news: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister (CM) Dr Mohan Yadav on Tuesday expressed grief over the death of two employees of the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC), who died of suffocation after descending into a sewer tank on Monday. CM Dr Yadav has directed the officials to provide a compensation of Rs 30 lakh each to the families of the victims. 

SC had mandated compensation of Rs 30L in sewer-related deaths

It is noteworthy that the Chief Minister’s orders align with the Supreme Court’s (SC) verdict. In 2023, the Apex court had mandated a compensation of Rs 30 lakh to the families of the people, who fall victim to sewer-related deaths. 

For the unversed, two men employed with the IMC had been cleaning a sewer line near Choithram Mandi’s gate in Indore on Monday evening. Reportedly, a piece of the suction pipe fell into the sewer tank during removal.

Toxic gas filled tank claims lives of both workers

To retrieve the pipe, an employee identified as Karan descended into the tank. He reportedly inhaled the toxic gases present inside the tank and stopped responding. When he failed to emerge, another worker named Ajay too went inside to rescue him, but met the same fate. 

The police and the SDRF teams rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation. Both the workers were taken to the hospital, where they were pronounced dead. 

Incident kicks up row

The incident has sparked outrage among the locals, who questioned how the workers were made to enter the tank without proper safety equipment and gas detection checks. The families of the deceased have demanded strict action against those responsible.