Two workers were killed after a lift collapsed at the Dr Narla Tata Rao Thermal Power Station (NTTPS) at Ibrahimpatnam near Andhra Pradehs’s Vijayawada on Sunday, March 19. The incident occurred when the cable of a lift in an under-construction building at the plant snapped. There were around 20 workers in the lift, which got stuck allegedly due to overloading. While 18 workers managed to get down, the cable snapped with two workers still inside. As a result, the lift came crashing down from a height of about 70 metres. Both workers sustained grievous injuries and were rushed to the NTTPS Board Hospital. However, both were declared dead.
The deceased were identified as Chotu Kumar Singh (23) and Jitendra Singh (24), both hailing from Jharkhand. The bodies were shifted to Vijayawada Government Hospital for post mortem. The police have registered a case and taken up investigation.
Some workers at the plant alleged that the lift could hold only 10 people, but that there were 20 people in it at the time of the mishap and heavy material was also being moved through the lift. The contract workers were working on the plant's stage five, which is under construction.
Labour unions staged a protest at the plant demanding that the management pay compensation and give jobs to the families of the deceased. The plant officials assured them that they will take steps to prevent recurrence of such incidents.