Collapsing mud buries 2 labourers at worksite, engineer injured

Two labourers were buried alive as a portion of mud collapsed on them while digging trenches to lay a pipeline for underground water supply at Immadihalli in Whitefield on Sunday.

Three fellow workers, including a civil engineer, escaped with minor injuries in the incident.

A senior police official said Sanjeev (19) and Akilesh (24), both from Uttar Pradesh, were working on a water pipeline project from Koramangala and Challaghatta valley connecting Kolar district.

The minor irrigation department has allotted the project to Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited.

Sanjeev and Akhilesh were digging up the trench to lay the pipes with other workers under the supervision of site engineer, Umashankar. The mud that was removed and dumped on either side of the trench collapsed on the workers around 11 am.

The workers present at the spot helped in the  rescue efforts. They could only save Umashankar and two other labourers, but Sanjeev and Akhilesh were dead by the time they were pulled out.

The Mahadevapura police, who inspected the accident spot, found that the accident was a result of negligence on the part of the company, which failed to take preventive measures and ensure the safety of the labourers.

Following inquiries, they arrested the company's vice-president, Subhash, and filed a case of death due to negligence.