He worked for phase-3, now left on the road

Contractor cant pay for injured labourers treatment

A 55-year-old man, who was injured at a Delhi Metro construction site last month, is about to be left alone on the streets of the Capital as the contractor involved in the accident, L&T, claims that it cannot further bear his medical expenses at a central Delhi private hospital.

Kamal Bahadur, a native of Nepal, was admitted to Sanjeevan Hospital in Darya Ganj on June 15 after a pole fell on his left leg at the construction site of Delhi Metro’s Phase-3 project at ITO. The incident had turned his leg into a heap of flesh and crushed bones.

“The hospital has discharged him, saying his condition cannot be improved and they cannot bear the expenses, which were till now being borne by L&T,” said Manoj, who runs a kiosk where Kamal used to work as a helper before the accident.
Despite being discharged, Kamal is still at the hospital, as Manoj has refused to take him back to his kiosk, where he used to sleep in the open. Manoj said Kamal has been bedridden ever since the accident and is not in a condition to stand for at least two to
three months.

“Kamal is homeless, and his family members in Nepal have not been informed about the accident. So his responsibility will fall on me, which I’m not ready to accept,” he added.
Manoj alleged that L&T staff had cajoled him not to file a police complaint after the accident happened. “They had promised that they will give the best possible treatment to him and will bear all his expenses. They asked me not to file a complaint and now they are denying from the fact,” he said.

A spokesperson of L&T said the company has spent Rs 3 lakh on Kamal’s treatment, and it cannot further bear the expenses.

“We paid for the initial 20 days of Kamal’s treatment. We believe that he is completely fine now and could be sent home. We are not deserting him as we will provide medical help to him at his house,” the spokesperson said.

Dr Prem Aggarwal, cardiologist and CEO of Sanjeevan Group Hospitals, said they are ready to provide all services till they are paid by L&T. “We will send our staff to Kamal’s house for basic care required post-surgery, but the expenses will have to be borne by the company involved,” he said.

Shrugging off the responsibility, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd spokesperson Tamojit said the incident took place outside their construction area. “The incident did not happen at our place, though we asked the contractor to give the best possible treatment,” he said.