The condition of two drivers working under the SAIl mines of Bolani under the Joda Mining Circle of Keonjhar district are very serious owing to a collision between two heavy vehicles which occurred inside the mines area in the early hours of Wednesday at a time when the 47th National Safety Week was being celebrated all over the country.
Tension prevailed among the workers when the news spread among them that Dinesh Thakur, the contractor of the company, was trying to take the fingerprints of the injured workers who were in senseless conditions in a hospital.
Sources revealed that allowing the vehicles to load excess quantities of materials than the permitted capacity, no supply of safety equipments and violations of other safety norms prescribed by the DGMS (Director General of Mines Safety) are the main causes of frequent accidents in the mines, for which valuable lives are lost. The officials of the company who are supposed to take care of the safety of workers are reportedly remaining silent after handing over the job to the contractors.
In order to suppress the present incident, the authorities had also not informed the local police which is mandatory on the part of the company management to do when any accident occurs inside the mines. It was demanded that strong action be taken against errant officials and contractors so that such accidents do not recur in future.