Bhubaneswar: At least five migrant workers from Odisha have lost their lives and several others are injured in the ammonia gas leak incident at a seafood processing and export unit in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruvallur on Sunday. The State government has confirmed the deaths on Monday.
The deceased have been identified as Jimani Juang (19), Geetha Juang, Bhumiya Juang (22), Sibani (22) and Phulamani Juang. As of now, three of the deceased have been identified as from Keonjhar district. “Other details will be shared after the verification process is completed,” an official from the Labour department informed.
Labour and Employee’s State Insurance (ESI) Minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia expressed grief over the matter and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved families. The Minister said the State government is remaining alert since the incident came to light and that constant coordination with the Tamil Nadu administration is being maintained to ensure that necessary medical help is extended to the injured.
A State team led by Labour and ESI department special secretary Rajesh Agrawala has reached Chennai to coordinate relief and assistance efforts. “We hope those responsible for the lapses will face strict action as per the law, following investigation,” he said. Upon completion of all formalities, the bodies will be handed over to relatives.
Officials informed that additional labour commissioner Madan Mohan Paik, one of the members of the State team, will remain in Chennai to coordinate with the hospital authorities in Tamil Nadu regarding the post-mortem and other related formalities.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced an ex-gratia assistance of Rs 4 lakh each from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) for the next of kin of each deceased labourers. In a statement, the Chief Minister said he was profoundly pained by the incident. He extended his deepest condolences to the bereaved families who lost their loved ones in this tragedy and wished a speedy recovery to all the injured Odia workers.
The CMO release further stated that the Odisha government is in constant contact with the Tamil Nadu administration to ensure immediate assistance for the affected workers. “Yesterday, Odisha Chief Secretary Smt. Anu Garg held discussions with her Tamil Nadu counterpart to ensure that the injured Odia labourers receive proper medical treatment and all necessary assistance without delay.”
Furthermore, on the directions of the Chief Minister, a team of three senior officials have reached Tiruvallur. The team is actively coordinating with local authorities to monitor the medical treatment of the injured workers and manage other necessary relief arrangements on the ground, it added.
Periyapalayam police have filed a case under sections 105 (culpable homicide) and 125 (a) (endangering human life or safety) of the BNS, and taken two brothers who own the firm, Mohan and Joseph, into custody for inquiry. A three-member panel has also been formed to probe the gas leak. It has been directed to submit an interim report within 24 hours and the final report within three days.