Two women labourers, lashi Majhi and Suka Majhi, of Musulipadara village under laxmipur block died on the spot while they were taking rest after loading sand from Kutinga Nallah on a tractor under Tikiri police station.
They along with four others were engaged in loading sand from a canal on a tractor when the tractor slipped and the two got buried under sand. Though the tractor and sand were removed after the incident, both the labourers were found dead.
Sources said there is lot of unauthorised sand mining from the riverbed without having any safety measures in the district. The labourers, who are mostly tribals, commute on the loaded tractors and tippers for their daily living. Both the revenue and the transport authorities, who are in tandem with the local contractors, violate basic norms for which many such incidents are inevitable. Meanwhile, the Tikiri police reached the spot and started investigation.