In a tragic incident, six people died and another was critically injured on Tuesday after suffocating inside an under-construction septic tank within the Madanpur Rampur police station limits of Kalahandi district.
The deceased have been identified as Nimain Charan Pal, his son Akash Pal, Adal Majhi, Manoranjan Hati, Baikuntha Jal, and Chhand Jal.
According to reports, the tragic incident unfolded during the construction of a septic tank at Nimain Charan’s home in Gaud Karlakhunta village under the Madanpur Rampur police limits in Odisha’s Kalahandi district on Tuesday.
Reports indicate that a local mason and several labourers from Gaud Karlakhunta village and nearby areas were reportedly working on the construction work when the mishap occurred.
Local police officials further said that Nimain accidentally tumbled into the septic tank at around 8 am on Tuesday while checking on the progress of the work.
Alarmed when his father failed to come out for a long time, Akash entered into the tank to rescue him but quickly found himself trapped as well.
Following this, four other labourers working at the site jumped into the tank one after the other in a desperate bid to save the father-son duo. However, due to the suspected presence of lethal toxic gas within the enclosure, all six people succumbed to asphyxiation.
The victims were pulled out and rushed to a nearby Community Health Centre (CHC), where doctors declared them brought dead.
Another labourer who sustained severe injuries, identified as Pankaj Bhoi from Hatikhoj village, was subsequently transferred to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) in Bhawanipatna for advanced emergency care.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday expressed deep grief over the tragic incident and declared a financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each for the immediate families of the deceased.
“On learning about the tragic accident at a construction site in Madanpur Rampur, Kalahandi district, which claimed the lives of six people, Chief Minister Shri@MohanMOdisha has expressed deep grief and expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased. He has also announced an ex-gratia of ₹4 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) to the next of kin of each deceased,” informed the Chief Minister’s Office in official X handle.
