Rajouri Garden deaths: ‘Victims were untrained, tech expert absent’

The south MCD and Delhi Pollution Control Committee, meanwhile, have placed the onus of safety on the restaurant owner.

Probing the death of two employees inside the kitchen effluent treatment plant (ETP) at Rajouri Garden’s Pirates of Grill restaurant, Delhi Police said the men were not trained to clean the set-up; a “technical expert” was not present to check if there was a gas leak; staff at the restaurant knew that build up of toxic gases was possible; and workers were not provided safety gear such as masks, safety belts, gloves and boots.

“The area manager and unit manager arrested in the case have claimed the staff were trained and the ETP was cleaned every day. However, as per our investigation, toxic gases cannot build up if that’s the case. There was no lapse in the ETP’s construction. We are trying to ascertain when the ETP was opened last,” said a senior police officer. On Saturday afternoon, Rakesh Singh Yadav (42) and Ajay Kanojia (19), employed in the restaurant’s housekeeping department died after inhaling toxic gases inside the kitchen’s treatment plant.
The restaurant remained unavailable for comment on Monday as well.

The south MCD and Delhi Pollution Control Committee, meanwhile, have placed the onus of safety on the restaurant owner. “We did not find any lapses during the surprise health inspection at the restaurant last month. The hotel has the required licences and no previous lapses on part of our officials or the hotel was found,” said a senior South MCD official.