Two people died after being exposed to a gas at the ESL Steel Limited plant in Jharkhand’s Bokaro district.
The deceased were identified as Sohan Mahto, a resident of Hazaribagh, and Sameer Ansari, a resident of Dhanbad.
The company said that one of the deceased was its employee, while the other was a worker employed by a business partner. Both were taken to the hospital after the gas exposure, but did not survive.
Reacting to the incident, Sanjay Kumar Sinha, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of ESL, said the company would conduct an investigation and that a decision regarding where the lapse occurred or who is responsible would be taken once the investigation report is received.
Family members of the deceased accused the company of negligence, saying neither of the two employees was provided with a mask. They also raised allegations of inadequate health facilities within the plant and claimed there was a significant delay in bringing the patients to the hospital because an ambulance was not available at the site.
“Chas sub-divisional magistrate Pranjal Danda asked executive magistrate Jaya Kumari and factory inspector Shivanand Laguri to visit the site and submit a detailed report to the district administration within 72 hours,” Bokaro Deputy Commissioner Ajay Nath Jha said.
Labour Superintendent Ranjit Kumar will ensure that adequate compensation is paid to the next of kin of the deceased as per law, Jha said.
(With PTI input)
Published – October 11, 2026 02:46 pm IST
