Contractor held for death of three workers in BSNL duct, officials booked for negligence

The chamber, which had been sealed for several days, was reopened without safety checks. Despite being mandated to deploy trained workers with protective gear, Patil allegedly sent unskilled labourers without equipment

The Nigdi police on Thursday arrested Ramesh Shivaji Patil, 46, a telecom infrastructure contractor, after three labourers died of suspected suffocation while working inside an underground optic fibre duct belonging to BSNL. Police have also booked BSNL officials for negligence.

The incident occurred around 3 pm on August 15, near Nirmal Villa, Sector 27/A, Nigdi Pradhikaran. (HT FILE)

The incident occurred around 3 pm on August 15, near Nirmal Villa, Sector 27/A, Nigdi Pradhikaran. The deceased were identified as Lakhan Asruba Dhavare, 35, Dattatray Vijaykumar Honale, 35—both from Chinchwad—and Sahebrao Sambhaji Girshete, 35, of Bijlinagar. A fourth worker, Babasaheb Ambadas Wagh, 52, who stayed outside the chamber, raised an alarm when the others collapsed.

According to the FIR, Patil’s firm had been contracted to lay fibre cables through the underground duct network. The chamber, which had been sealed for several days, was reopened without safety checks. Despite being mandated to deploy trained workers with protective gear, Patil allegedly sent unskilled labourers without equipment.

Police said the workers entered a 10x10 ft chamber that contained about three feet of stagnant water. On opening the sealed duct, toxic gases are believed to have escaped, causing Girshete to collapse. Dhavare and Honale rushed in to help him, but also lost consciousness. The trio was pulled out and taken to Lokmanya Hospital, where doctors declared them dead on arrival.