Gurgaon: 2 labourers killed after soil caves in, kin allege negligence

According to police, the incident took place around 4 pm when Malkhan, Guddo and three other labourers were working at the basement of the plot, dug at least 15-20 feet deep.

A police officer said, “While digging, an adjacent wall collapsed and fell on the two victims, who were buried underneath the soil. Three labourers, who were working a few feet apart from them, escaped unhurt.”

Police said the victims fell unconscious and their bodies were retrieved and taken to a private hospital, where they were declared dead on arrival.

Malkhan’s brother, Rajkumar, a painter, alleged that the incident occurred due to the negligence of the contractor and the plot owner. “Had proper safety gear and equipment been provided to them, they would have survived. The wall should have been concretised and proper support should have been given before digging at the bottom,” he said.

Rajkumar said Malkhan earned Rs 700-800 a day for labour work and was about to get married soon: “The family had been looking for a match for him. I had spoken to him three days ago over the phone. He had been unreachable since then. He used to stay with me earlier at Sector 23 and had recently moved after he found work at another construction site. Yesterday at 5 pm, police informed me that my brother had been admitted to a hospital. When I reached there, he had died. We are devastated to lose two family members.”

Malkhan (28)

Guddo’s elder son, Sunil (22), a labourer at Burari in Delhi, said he does not remember when he last spoke to his mother. “It had been weeks. She did not have a phone. I visited her a month ago and since then I have been engaged in work. She earned Rs 400-500 doing labour work and odd jobs. My father had gone to our native village in MP earlier this week, but she stayed back due to work,” said Sunil.

Guddo is survived by her husband and three children — two sons aged 22 and 15 and an 18-year-old daughter.

Gurgaon Police spokesperson Subhash Boken said: “An FIR has been registered against the contractor supervising the construction work and the plot owner. We have initiated a probe.”

The FIR was registered under IPC sections 304-A (causing death by negligence) and 34 (common intention).