Two workers killed as crane section collapses at Nagpur textile park site

Two labourers were killed and two others seriously injured in Nagpur when the upper part of a crane working at a height of about 100 feet broke off and crashed to the ground at a construction site. The textile park is under construction in the MHADA premises at Cotton Market, under the Ganeshpeth police station limits.

A textile park and a commercial complex are being built in the MHADA premises, where two huge cranes had been installed for the work. At about 10.30 am, the upper part of one crane, at a height of about 100 feet, suddenly snapped and fell. The heavy section struck the second crane standing nearby. The accident was so severe that workers at the site were caught in it. Within moments the premises were in screams and chaos. Four workers were seriously hurt. Police and the fire brigade were informed, and the injured were taken to hospital. Vishwanath Kathane, a resident of Bhandara, and Mukesh Nishad of Uttar Pradesh were declared dead. The other two injured workers are undergoing treatment.

How the part of a crane working at 100 feet came to break is the biggest question. Whether the crane had been technically inspected before work began, whether the machinery was being regularly maintained and, most important, whether adequate safety arrangements were in place to protect workers are being investigated by police.

The contract for the work was given by MHADA to B.G. Shirke Construction Technology Private Limited. Company officials are said to have been present at the time of the accident.

Several large private and government projects are under way in the city, where safety rules are not being followed, and the authorities act only after an accident occurs.