4 dead as slab at cement factory collapses in MP

Four labourers were killed and 15 injured on Thursday morning in a slab collapse at a JK Cement factory in Madhya Pradesh’s Panna district, the police said.

The incident took place at an under-construction unit of the factory located near Amaanganj town, 350 km from Bhopal, around 10 am.

“Four labourers — three from Bihar’s Purnia and one from Simaria police station limit in Panna district — died in the mishap. Fifteen others were injured,” said Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Lalit Shakyawar.

Rescue operations, during which drones were used to inspect if any person was still trapped under the debris, were over. A probe was being carried out to ascertain the exact cause behind the incident and those found guilty would not be spared, Shakyawar said.

He said that prima facie, the “shuttering” (scaffolding of planks supporting setting concrete) of a beam on the seventh floor suddenly gave in, leading to the incident. The injured were sent to Katni for better treatment, the official added.

The firm would be paying a compensation of Rs 18 lakh each to the kin of the deceased labourers and Rs 1 lakh each to the injured, he said.