Three KMDA workers die by suffocation in Kolkata Leather Complex

In a tragic incident on Sunday morning, three KMDA workers lost their lives after descending into a manhole to clean a gutter at Bantalla in the Kolkata Leather Complex. The deceased have been identified as Farzam Sheikh, Hasi Sheikh, and Suman Sardar. Their bodies were recovered and sent for post-mortem examinations as police investigate the cause of death.

According to sources, the workers had been assigned to clean the tannery's pipeline at plot number 452. When the trio failed to resurface after a considerable amount of time, officials on-site grew suspicious. The Leather Complex police station was alerted, and both police and the disaster management team arrived at the scene. The workers were retrieved from the pipeline in an unconscious state and rushed to the hospital, where doctors declared them dead on arrival.

Initial investigations suggest that the workers suffocated due to toxic fumes from waste generated by nearby leather factories. However, authorities have stated that the exact cause of death will be confirmed only after the post-mortem reports are released. Mayor Firhad Hakim commented on the incident, stating, "We are investigating the matter. It appears to be a chemical reaction-related incident."

The tragic deaths have sparked outrage and raised several pressing questions about worker safety. The Supreme Court had recently prohibited manual cleaning of manholes in six states, including West Bengal. This raises the question of why these workers were sent into the manhole despite the ban. Additionally, concerns have emerged over whether proper safety protocols and equipment were provided to the workers before they descended into the hazardous environment.

Local residents and labor rights activists are demanding accountability, questioning whether negligence played a role in this preventable tragedy. Authorities are also probing whether additional workers might still be trapped inside the pipeline, though no further individuals have been reported missing as of now.