Faulty elevator: Firm told to deposit Rs 2 lakh in PGI fund

Chandigarh, May 2

The Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has fined M/s Otis Elevator Company (India) Ltd for installing a faulty lift at the SBI office in Patiala that collapsed midway and three employees were hospitalised with “life-threatening injuries” on August 8, 2018. It has been told to deposit Rs 2 lakh in the PGI Poor Patient Welfare Fund.

The commission said the complainant-bank was a public entity, therefore, the compensation on the account of harassment, mental agony, expenses and loss caused could not be awarded. However, instead the opposite parties are directed to deposit Rs 2 lakh in the account of the Director, PGI Poor Patient Welfare Fund.

The order by commission’s presiding member Rajinder Kumar Goyal and member Kiran Sibal came on an application filed by the injured employees — Jaswinder Singh, Balwant Singh and Sarbal Singh.

The company, in its reply, said there was no lapse on the part of the respondents in the maintenance of the elevator and the incident occurred due to the internal corrosion of the ropes. It further said experts of the Otis Engineering had carried out the necessary extensive metallurgical probe to examine the sample ropes in order to establish the root cause of the alleged incident. “We have been advised that the root cause for the breaking of the rope was due to internal corrosion at the hitch point. The probable cause of the internal corrosion may be due to the environmental factor of moisture contamination at the hitch point,” the company added. — TNS 

‘PAY Rs 25K RELIEF’

• The commission has also directed Otis India to pay Rs 8.90 lakh to the SBI, which it reimbursed its three employees for their medical expenses along with 6% interest
• The firm has been asked to pay Rs 25,000 as litigation charges within 45 days of the receipt of the certified copy of the order