Nabarangpur: A man was crushed to death and his son was injured while they were conducting blasts at a quarry in a forest in Raighar block of Nabarangpur district, Tuesday.
The deceased was identified as Bhimasen Majhi and his injured son is Khageswar Majhi. Bhimasena was crushed to death after a stone fell over him and Khageswa’s limbs were broken in the mishap.
Khageswar was rescued by his relatives and shifted to the Community Health Centre. After preliminary treatment, he was shifted to Nabarangpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH), where doctors said his condition was critical.
Sources said the incident occurred at 11 am Tuesday while the father and son were busy blasting at the quarry. Suddenly, a huge boulder came crashing on them killing Bhimasena on the spot and injuring his son.
Police reached the spot and sent Bhimasena’s body for post-mortem. The cops registered a case of ‘unnatural death’, sources said.
Many use dynamites to blast hill stones and carry them illegally for use as concrete chips. Illegal stone mining has killed many labourers who were either crushed to death or were killed by explosions.
The district administration has not taken action against stone quarry owners. The locals said many stone quarries were operating illegally without permission from the administration.
The stone quarries lack safety measures and often endanger workers. According to local revenue inspector, steps would be taken to raid illegal quarries and action taken against the guilty after an investigation.
PNN