Nabarangpur: The NHRC has ordered the Chief Secretary to pay a compensation of Rs 3 lakh to the kin of a tribal woman.
Reports said that a 60-year-old tribal woman, Hira Dei, wife of Kusha Bhatra, a resident of Pokanaguda village in the Jharigaon block of the district, had gone to a pond in the village for fishing December 4, 2014. She came in contact with a 11 KV electric cable which was lying in the pond and died.
A human rights activist from Bhawanipatna, Dillip Kumar Das, filed a complaint with the Commission, and a case was registered.
The Commission issued a show-cause notice to the Chief Secretary, after getting reports from the Nabarangpur Police and Energy Department December 13, 2017, and asked him why a compensation of Rs 3 lakh should not be paid to the kin of the deceased.
The Chief Secretary sought reports from Southco, and the Assistant Engineer of Southco’s Umerkot Division submitted a report stating that the deceased was mentally ill and had lost her life due to her own fault.
However, the Commission rejected the report and Thursday ordered the Chief Secretary to pay compensation to the family of the deceased within four weeks.
PNN