In the recent period, a series of workplace accidents have occurred across Haryana, resulting in dozens of fatalities. This is a direct fall out of the indifference of the BJP government and its failure to ensure the safety of the workers, leaving them to fend for themselves in life-threatening working conditions.

Massive Explosion and Fire in Faridabad

A massive fire and explosions erupted on February 16, at the Kalkaji Lubricant and Shiv Steel Company in Faridabad. It has starkly exposed the blatant disregard for workers' lives, common in the industrial sector. While 42 people were injured, including three police personnel, six people lost their lives in this horrific fire and explosion. Among the deceased were two firefighters and one police official. The son of the company owner also died in the incident along with two workers. The condition of several other workers remains critical. This incident is a direct result of gross negligence on the part of the government and the administration. The company was not using any form of safety equipment or protective measures. Rather the drums containing highly inflammable chemicals were left out in the open. The fire was so furious that it engulfed the people walking on the adjacent road.

The government—along with the Safety and Health Department, which bears the responsibility for inspecting safety measures—is no less culpable in this matter. The Department lacks adequate staff for monitoring and inspection, and the government has now effectively dismantled the entire monitoring mechanism by amending existing laws. Workers and employees have been left to perish while industrialists are being encouraged to maximise profits in the name of "Ease of Doing Business." The government's four new Labor Codes also means the same: the owners must make a profit - even if workers perish. This incident was not merely an accident, but a direct consequence of severe shortage of safety measures. The firefighters who arrived at the scene lacked essential firefighting gears, including dry chemical powder (DCP), carbon dioxide and specialised clean agents. Consequently, the personnel were forced to confront the fire at close range in an attempt to extinguish it—a decision that ultimately cost them their lives. It is pertinent to note that both the firefighters were contractual employees of the Haryana government's Fire Department.

Intervention by CITU

Immediately following the incident, the Sarv Karamchari Sangh Haryana and  CITU visited the accident site and met the injured workers in the hospitals. Further, in a meeting with the district administration, they demanded immediate free medical treatment and compensation for the injured, as well as an inquiry into the incident and legal action—including the registration of a case—against the company management. Due to the administration's failure to take appropriate action, the Sarv Karamchari Sangh Haryana and CITU staged a massive protest demonstration at the DC's office on February 24, where a memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister was submitted to the SDM. Subsequently, a delegation met the DC. The delegation demanded financial assistance of Rs 1 crore for the dependents of the deceased, a government job for one family member of each deceased victim, the conferment of 'Martyr' status upon the deceased firemen and police constable, and compensation of Rs 10 lakhs each for the injured. The protesters were addressed by various leaders, including Subhash Lamba (President, All India State Government Employees Federation), Naresh Kumar Shastri (President, Sarv Karamchari Sangh Haryana, and Municipal Employees Union Haryana), Jai Bhagwan (CITU Haryana State General Secretary), Rajendra Sinand (State President, Fire Department Employees Union), Gulshan Bhardwaj (General Secretary), Shivcharan and Sunil Chandalia (leaders of the Municipal Employees Union), Sudha Pal (CITU leader), Nirantar Parashar (District President), and Lajja Ram (retired employees' leader).

Demands were placed before the government and the administration to accord 'Martyr' status to the late fire department employees—Mr. Bhavichand Sharma and Ranvir Singh (HKRN)—and the police constable, Ravi; and other demands like Rs 1 crore to their families; a regular government job to the spouse or one family member. It was further demanded that the critically injured be ensured free medical treatment along with financial assistance of Rs 10 lakhs each. Similar demands for the deceased labourers were also raised. To prevent the recurrence of such incidents in future, it was demanded that more staff be recruited in the Safety and Health Department, a system for continuous inspections be established, and immediate availability of modern safety equipment be ensured at all fire stations.

10 Women Workers Burnt to Death in Factory Fire

On March 8—International Women's Day—a massive fire at an illegal factory manufacturing bombs and firecrackers in Safidon (Jind) claimed the lives of 10 women. Operating illegally for several years within a residential area, this warehouse-like facility was engaged in the production of explosive materials, including bombs and firecrackers. 18 labourers were employed there, all of whom were women. The premises were completely devoid of fire extinguishers; furthermore, there were no windows or emergency exits. In fact, the iron gates at the entrance of the warehouse/factory were padlocked from both inside and outside. An electrical spark ignited the explosive materials, engulfing the female workers in a raging inferno. Four women who happened to be near the stairs leading to the roof managed to climb up and jump down; they survived but sustained fractures in their legs. The others were unable to escape. Local residents broke through the warehouse wall to create an opening, through which they entered the building and pulled the women out. Four labourers died on the spot, while six others succumbed to their injuries at the hospital. Four remain in critical condition, battling for their lives. It has come to light that the same owners were operating three other similar illegal factories in different localities. The factory owners had not obtained any government permits whatsoever for the manufacture of explosive materials such as bombs and firecrackers. Yet, under the current BJP administration, all these operations were being conducted right under the very nose of the local authorities. The situation is so dire that, leave aside the enforcement of labor laws, these female workers were being paid a meagre monthly wage of just Rs 5,000 for an eight-hour workday. Moreover, the owners would withhold one month's salary as an advance to ensure the women did not quit their jobs—effectively compelling them to work as bonded labourers.

Intervention by CITU

The very next day of the incident, a CITU delegation visited the site. The delegation included CITU State General Secretary Jai Bhagwan, Jind District Secretary Sandeep Singh, Joint Secretary Radheshyam, and CPM District Secretary Kapoor Singh. Information regarding the incident was gathered from people residing in the vicinity of the factory. Eyewitnesses reported that conditions inside the premises made it impossible to enter through the regular access points. Consequently, a section of the boundary wall was breached from the adjacent vacant plot to create an entry point, through which ordinary citizens rescued the injured victims. They stated that the district administration and the fire department were informed immediately after the incident occurred, but fire-tenders failed to arrive for over an hour. Upon inquiring into this delay, it was revealed that despite the area being a sub-division, the fire department possessed only a single fire tender—which, at the time, happened to be deployed elsewhere. Furthermore, not a single ambulance arrived at the scene. Consequently, local residents had to transport the injured to the hospital using their own private vehicles. The CITU delegation met the families of the deceased, who are living in conditions of extreme poverty. The delegation also participated in the funeral rites of one of the female workers who had lost her life. On the same day, the delegation held discussions regarding the incident and their demands with Satpal Brahmachari, the Congress Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha), who had also arrived at the site. Later that day, CITU State Vice President Satbir Singh and Secretary Vinod visited the University of Health Sciences in Rohtak to meet with the injured victims who had been referred there, and their family members. The following day, CITU staged a protest at the office of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Safidon, severely castigating the government and the administration for their abject failure. The CITU delegation asserted that these deaths were not merely the result of a fire accident but constituted "institutional murder." They argued that responsibility for this tragedy lies not only on the factory owners but also on the administration, which must be held accountable. Therefore, they demanded that a case of murder be registered under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.  CITU demanded that family of each deceased person be provided with compensation of Rs 50 lakh and a permanent government or semi-government job for one family member; financial assistance of ₹10 lakh to injured workers and their entire medical treatment at government expense; criminal cases (under Section 302) be registered against the factory owner and the culpable officials, and their arrest; special drive be launched across the entire state to inspect unsafe and illegal factories; all four anti-worker labour codes be repealed immediately.

As a result of these interventions, and during the ongoing session of the Haryana Legislative Assembly, the Chief Minister announced compensation of ₹5 lakh for the dependents of the deceased and ₹2 lakh for the injured. However, this amount is extremely meagre. In this matter, the police registered a case under Sections 287, 288, 106(1), 125, and 143(3) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Explosives Act, and the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act. Yielding to this pressure, all four factory owners were arrested four days later. However, the charge of murder has not yet been added to the case.

Seven Workers Killed at Under-Construction Project 

On March 9, in Sidhrawali, under the Bilaspur police station area of Gurugram district, an earthen wall collapsed during excavation work for a sewage treatment plant (STP) at Signature Global's under-construction project (City of Colors). Seven workers died in this tragic accident, while four are in critical condition. The accident occurred around 8 p.m. The STP was being constructed in a basement approximately 60 feet deep. Suddenly, the soil collapsed from one side, completely burying around 11 workers. Later, the SDRF team arrived at the scene and took over the rescue operation. The rescue operation continued for approximately two hours to rescue the workers buried under the soil. Meanwhile, the builder blocked the entry of media and outsiders. Seven workers died, and two are still in critical condition. The situation is so pathetic that the company did not stop its work at all.  Such incidents are occurring regularly where safety standards are grossly ignored.  

The CITU State Committee has demanded that the Haryana government brings an end to the violation of workers' human, civil, and legal rights; ensure adherence to safety standards, ensure the availability of safety equipment in all institutions, and ensure the recruitment of employees and officers in the Safety and Health Department, and take strict action against erring company owners.