Labourer dies, another hurt as soil caves in at Pune-Solapur highway work site in Indapur

One labourer died and another was injured on Friday, October 30, when a mound of soil came down on workers at a National Highway construction site on the Pune-Solapur road in Indapur taluka. The accident happened at about 10 am, close to the Rajwadi flyover. Two men were buried under the debris. One was dragged out alive. The other could not be saved.

The dead man is Mashrubal Sheikh, 25, according to one account. Another account spells the name Mashrapur Shaikh. The injured man is Narim Riyazuddin Akhtar, 30, also reported as Naeem Akhtar. Both are said to be from Malda district in West Bengal. He is being treated at the Indapur sub-district hospital, where his condition is stable. He has an injury to his right leg. One report describes his injuries as minor.

The reports differ on the exact spot and the nature of the work. Most place it at Rajwadi, where a retaining wall or side embankment was being built near the flyover. One report mentions Bijwadi and a service road, and also names Rajwadi Pati, on the lane from Pune towards Solapur. Accounts of the crew also differ. One says six labourers were at the site and three had gone for tea. Another says three were working, and one of them sensed the danger and escaped unhurt.

Fellow workers and local residents were the first to start rescue work, before officials arrived. Teams of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the police and the revenue department then reached the site and joined the relief effort. The injured man was sent to hospital as soon as he was out of the debris.

The injured worker said safety was missing at the site. "The soil suddenly collapsed while we were working there. There were two of us. A full 10 to 12 feet of soil came down from the top of the road. Nothing had been put there for safety. Our contractor was Ganesh. The contractor had now come here. He is the associate of our mistri, and our mistri was with him. Nothing had been put there for safety."

Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Dattatray Bharne went to the spot on hearing of the accident and asked for details. He said the contractor should have taken the necessary precautions while working on the highway. He said it must be checked whether the safety rules for National Highway work had been followed. An inquiry would look into whether the contractor had taken care of safety, he said, and those found guilty would face action.

Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Ajit Pawar expressed deep grief at the labourer's death and ordered an inquiry into how the accident happened. Ankita Patil Thackeray reacted on social media. She asked all the officials, government agencies and office staff concerned to cooperate promptly in the rescue work.

The accident has caused alarm along this stretch of the highway. Residents are asking how so much soil could come down while the wall work was on, and what the actual cause was. They also want to know whether safety arrangements had been made for the workers. Citizens have demanded a thorough inquiry and that responsibility be fixed. They also want worker safety rules strictly enforced at all construction sites along the highway. The administration is taking further action. The cause of the collapse has not yet been made public.