P C Mohan demands independent safety audit of all Bengaluru metro works

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) must immediately constitute a high-level, independent safety audit of all ongoing metro works, demanded PC Mohan, MP, Bangalore Central, in a letter to BMRCL Managing Director M Maheshwar Rao on Thursday.

Reacting to the accident at Kogilu Cross on Wednesday, where a 42-year-old autorickshaw driver was crushed to death after a metro girder toppled and fell on his vehicle, Mohan also demanded the suspension and blacklisting of contractors with a history of safety violations, a public disclosure of safety funds, and accountability for responsible officials.

"The public trust in the BMRCL cannot be rebuilt until stringent, transparent, and accountable measures are put in place immediately," wrote the MP.

In his letter, Mohan alleged repeated failures to implement safety protocols, misuse or misappropriation of the safety budget, inaction despite previous fatal incidents, and negligence by BMRCL engineers and supervisory staff, who are "either unqualified, overburdened, or willfully negligent".

"There is no supervision on vehicular movement, barricading is inadequate or absent, and structural elements are not properly secured or monitored... It appears that the funds allocated under the contract for site safety, including deployment of safety personnel, fencing, signage, temporary lighting, and safety equipment are being either grossly underutilised or swindled," he wrote, adding that there is no transparency in their deployment.

Mohan also highlighted an incident from January 2023, where a woman and her young son were killed in a metro accident, to allege that the BMRCL had not initiated any stringent punitive action against defaulting contractors.

"This indifference amounts to tacit approval of unsafe practices," he wrote, warning that inaction would only lead to further loss of life.