Death of workers at the double bedroom housing project site in Rampally of Keesara mandal points at glaring Engineering lapses with regard to formwork and scaffolding principles, opine experts of Civil Engineering.
The five workers fell to death from the 10th floor of a block under construction, when the metal platform they were working on had collapsed under pressure. Engineering officials from the GHMC informed that the workers were trying to remove the concrete formwork or centring material from the structure forcefully, when the scaffolding gave in.
“The tie rod of the scaffold broke, leading to the collapse. Fall from over hundred feet height did not leave the workers a chance,” said an official. However, experts believe it to be a civil engineering lapse, as the scaffolding is as important as the main structure, and is to be designed keeping in view the standardised practices.
Director of National Institute of Technology N.V. Ramana Rao says scaffolding collapses could happen if the base is not fixed properly or the nuts and bolts are faulty. Even the slope at which the tie rods are placed assumes importance with regard to the stability and balance of the scaffolding. “Design of formwork and scaffolding is very important part of Civil Engineering, but nobody takes it seriously,” Prof. Rao says. The Bureau of Indian Standards has a set of rules for scaffolding in its code of practice, but they are rarely adhered to, he says.
“Scaffolding and centring are key Civil Engineering subjects, but most engineering colleges do not pay much attention to them here. Contractors too leave it to the labourers to figure out how they want to do the work,” says another Engineer on the condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, GHMC Commissioner M. Dana Kishore has issued orders placing an Assistant Engineer under suspension for negligence in ensuring proper safety measures. Rampur is one among the prominent housing sites being developed by GHMC under double bedroom project. A total of 6,240 dwelling units are under construction in 52 towers with 10 floors each. Construction of a total of 20 blocks has been completed, while work is on in remaining 34 blocks. More than 2,000 construction labourers, mostly from places such as Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, and West Bengal are engaged in work at the site, officials informed.
Mayor Bonthu Ram Mohan announced an ex-graita of ₹2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased from his funds. Besides, the families are entitled for ₹ 5 lakh from the contractor, and ₹8 lakh to ₹10 lakh insurance from Labour Department.