Bhubaneswar: After a roof collapse at Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) here killed one and injured at least another man Friday night, airport director VV Rao Saturday informed that an expert team from Delhi will investigate the circumstances that lead to the mishap.
“We have already informed the incident to our headquarters in Delhi. They will send competent persons to inspect the site within one or two days,” BPIA director Rao said.
“We have to see why it happened. What led to the collapse of the roof? Experts from our headquarter will investigate the matter looking into technical reasons behind the mishap,” Rao said, adding that the incident has no impact on flight operation at the airport.
Bhubaneswar Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Anup Sahu said the police has already started questioning the officials and engineers of the construction company.
“We have set up a team to undertake a criminal investigation into the matter and trying to find out why the roof collapsed,” Sahu said.
The DCP said: “We will initiate legal procedure required for the case. An expert team of engineers have been requisitioned to verify whether the safety measures were taken while executing the work. We have also sought the agreement paper for the construction of the building.”
Meanwhile, mudslinging has started over the mishap with political parties blaming each other for the incident.
Terming the mishap at BPIA unfortunate, BJD spokesperson Sasmit Patra demanded compensation for the family of the deceased, free treatment for the injured one and exemplary punishment for the responsible ones. At the same time, Patra said unlike BJP, BJD never believes in politicising issues.
In response to Sasmit’s remark, BJP spokesperson Golak Mohapatra demanded answers to his questions such as why the CRC, who had not visited the Bomikhal flyover mishap site, visited the BPIA mishap place, why the then works department secretary was given a ticket, who are the leaders and officers in link with Dillip Khatoi, the contractor and how many projects have been awarded to Dillip.
“Sasmit may be saying so to shield Dillip,” Golak further alleged.
Similarly, Congress has demanded a CBI inquiry into the mishap.
Senior Congress leader and Jatni MLA Sura Routray termed the mishap a major one. “Had it taken place during daytime, the causality figures would have been significantly higher. Both the state and central governments are responsible for it. It speaks volumes of the carelessness of the contractor firm. The contractor must be brought to book through a CBI investigation,” he said and demanded a compensation of Rs 20 lakh for the family of the deceased and job to a family member.
Notably, the under-construction building linking Terminal 1 with Terminal 2 collapsed Friday night trapping and killing a man identified as Antaryami Guru — a resident of Badamba area — who worked as a helper of a truck engaged in the construction work at the airport. Nabakishore Swain of Dhenkanal district, who worked as a driver, also suffered injuries in the mishap and is undergoing treatment at the Capital Hospital here.
PNN/Agencies