Bhayandar: Almost 48 hours after three contractual workers lost their lives because of asphyxiation while working inside a sewage treatment plant (STP) in Mira Road, the Kashimira police have arrested two people including the supervisor for causing the deaths due to negligence. However, the labour contractor is still at large. The incident was reported from Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation’s (MBMC) STP near Prem Nagar in Mira Road on Wednesday afternoon.
The arrested accused have been identified as Prince Santosh Singh and Narendra Antad. While Singh supervised the plant where the incident occurred, Antad is said to be the in-charge of all STPs in the twin-city which are run and maintained by Subhash Projects And Marketing Infra Limited, a private agency deployed by the civic administration for the provision of underground sewerage facilities and commission of ten pumping stations, supported by an equal number of STP for the scientific disposal of recycled water.
“While the labour contractor identified as Andvara Bibi Paathar who is also a co-accused in the crime is still at large, the trio have been booked under section 304 (a) of the IPC,” confirmed Senior Police Inspector Vaibhav Shingare. Meanwhile, former Congress legislator Muzaffar Hussain has demanded FIRs to be registered against concerned MBMC officials who were equally responsible for the deaths.
The deceased workers, Muzaffar Mohalik (24), Abdul Rafique Akbar Mandal (55) and Mafizzul Miraj Mandal (19), had entered the tank to operate a valve which separates sludge from sewage in the underground chamber when the incident occurred.
