Hyderabad: Family members of a 24-year-old woman who lost her life at a metro station here when a sharp-edged piece of plaster fell on her head have agreed to accept Rs 20 lakh as compensation and may be a job for one of them.
But the deal signed and certain conditions as part of it are yet to have an impact on the family struggling to come to terms with the sudden tragedy.
The woman’s husband Harikanth Reddy says, “Can this equate a life? My wife died due to the sheer negligence of some authorities. It could be anyone standing there. Should we fear for our lives because our administration is incompetent?” Reddy who works for a software company in the city. Another family member said Mounika’s sister is inconsolable.
Reddy has also filed a complaint with the SR Nagar Police Station, though the memorandum of understanding signed with L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited that is building the project states that the family will not file any ‘criminal action’ against the company for the "unfortunate incident". The construction giant is building the 72-km long elevated project across three corridors. It’s been less than two years since the Hyderabad Metro was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The woman, K Mounika, was standing beneath the elevated Ameerpet metro station with her cousin when the accident happened. On their way to look for a hostel for Mounika’s cousin, they were waiting for the rain to stop.
“A sharp edge of the piece fell on a young woman’s head from about 9m height and she unfortunately succumbed to the injury while being taken to a nearby hospital by L&T personnel,” said a statement from NVS Reddy, Managing Director of HMRL.
The incident has also led to an outrage among citizens questioning the quality and standards of the project worth crores. Many have hit out at Municipal Administration Minister KT Rama Rao under whose purview the metro rail falls. The total cost of the project is reportedly around Rs 18,500 crore. Thousands of people use the metro services on a daily basis.
Experts and structural engineers have said that such cases are very rare and can only happen due to lack of proper cementing or bonding while plastering.
“The metro was a relief from the horrible traffic, but if this is the quality of the work, it’s scary. It’s been only a year and the construction is wearing out. Officials have claimed that Hyderabad Metro is best in terms of design and execution. What was this?” Naresh Kumar, a daily commuter, told News18.
Rao has instructed the authorities to conduct a thorough investigation by independent engineering experts and asked Reddy to take appropriate steps. “Also emphasised that all the station structures & facilities shall be minutely checked, so that such unfortunate incidents do not recur. The reputation gained by Hyderabad metro for it’s high quality and safety standards shall be maintained & safety shall be a high priority,” the minister wrote on Twitter.
Reddy said that the minister emphasised that the matter needs to be taken very seriously and that all structures and facilities at metro stations should be minutely checked to prevent recurrence of such incidents. The minister reiterated the need to maintain the reputation gained by Hyderabad Metro for its high quality and safety standards, Reddy said.
(With inputs from PTI)
Comments
0 comment