The Andhra Pradesh government has suspended seven officials following an inquiry into the wall collapse which killed seven devotees at the Simhachalam temple in Visakhapatnam. A week after the fatal accident took place on April 30, the state government has reportedly suspended both temple and tourism department officials, while also blacklisting the contractor who built the wall.
Executive Officer of the Simhachalam Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha temple, K Subba Rao, temple executive engineer Srinivasa Raju, temple junior engineer K Babji, Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) executive engineer Ramana, assistant engineer P Madan, deputy executive engineers KSN Murthy and Swamy were suspended over the incident, according to The Times of India.
Contractor Lakshmana Rao, who executed the works, was blacklisted, The New Indian Express reported.
The wall collapse took place during the Chandanotsavam temple festival, following which Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had tasked a three-member committee with investigating the incident. The suspensions were based on the committee’s preliminary report submitted on May 5, Monday. A detailed report is expected in a month.
The committee, led by Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) S Suresh Kumar, also included Inspector General (IG) of Police Ake Ravi Krishna and Engineer-in-Chief, Irrigation Department Venkateswar Rao. The committee spoke to various officials and contractors involved in the construction of the wall, including contractor Lakshmana Rao.
Visuals of Lakshmana Rao telling the committee that he was rushed to finish the construction of the wall in time for the Chandanotsavam festival were widely circulated on social media.
