Two workers killed, two injured as crane collapses at Ganeshpeth textile park site in Nagpur

Two workers were killed and two others injured on Friday morning when a crane collapsed at a construction site at the Textile Park in Nagpur's Ganeshpeth area. The crane, about 40 metres tall, was being used in work on a MHADA building under construction. It fell suddenly.

The dead are Vishwanath Kathane (40, a resident of Gondia) and Mukesh Nishad (a resident of Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh). The injured are Manturam (26, a resident of Chhattisgarh) and Mahesh Mistri. Panic broke out at the site after the accident.

The workers had come to work as usual on Friday morning. Between about 10.30 am and 11 am, work was under way to erect the 40-metre crane. The crane lost its balance, tilted to one side and came crashing down.

It fell on workers who were working below. It all happened so suddenly that they had no chance to save themselves. The contract for the project has been given to B.J. Shirke company. Ramji Prajapati was operating the crane at the time of the accident.

Fire brigade and police teams reached the spot soon after being informed. Manturam, 26, was trapped in the wreckage of the crane, and firefighters ran a special operation to get him out. Fire officer Sunil Dokre, Bhagwan Wagh, Aklim Sheikh, Vilas Tilgule and Devanand Shamkule began the rescue work at the site.

Driver Ganesh Rajurkar and Nilesh Tethe, a fire department worker employed on contract, climbed the crane without regard for their own safety to try to reach the trapped worker. Manturam was brought down on a stretcher and admitted to hospital immediately. The other injured were also sent to hospital for treatment.

Ganeshpeth police reached the spot after the accident and drew up a panchnama. A case has been registered. Investigating officer Atul Tawle inspected the site with his team. The exact technical reason for the crane's fall is being established.

Police are also examining whether the necessary arrangements for the workers' safety had been made at the site and whether safety norms were being followed. The accident has once again raised the question of workers' safety at construction sites.