Hyderabad Sewerage Board wants to learn lessons in safety

Hyderabad: Following Saturday’s tragedy at a manhole in Madhapur which claimed the lives of four persons, the Sewerage Board on Monday constituted a technical committee to look into safety precautions for workers that are followed in other parts of the country and abroad. The Board has called for opinions from experts.

Board operations and maintenance director Rameshwar Rao said: “Safety equipment inclu-des gloves, gum boots, helmets, safety ropes, oxygen cylinders, head lamps and breathing apparatus. The Board, with a budget of Rs 46 lakh, had procured safety equipment for all operations and maintenance divisions. Over 1,000 employees have been called to the head office at Khairatabad for a re-training session.”

Asked why the workers at Ayyappa Society did not use safety equipment, the officer said, “The work was illegally being carried out by a sub-contractor. Neither the division officer or the head office was informed. A new sewer line had to be connected to an existing line and the unskilled workers were trying to remove silt. It is illegal for these workers to have entered the manhole without permission and without procedure.”