Death toll in stone quarry collapse in UP climbs to 4

Three more bodies have been recovered from the rubble of a stone quarry that collapsed in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh, taking the death toll to four, an official said on Monday.

District Magistrate, Sonbhadra, BN Singh said the bodies were recovered on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday.

"One body was recovered in the night. The deceased was identified as Indrajit (30), a resident of Panari, Obra. The other two bodies have not been identified and efforts are on to identify them," Singh said.

The quarry collapsed on Saturday evening.

Additional Director General of Police (ADG), Varanasi Zone, Piyush Mordia on Sunday said clearing the rubble is taking time due to presence of several heavy stones.

Sonbhadra Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhishek Verma had said they were informed about the collapse at around 4.30 pm on Saturday at Obra Police Station.

The caller said that several workers were buried under the debris after a portion of a stone quarry operated by Krishna Mining Works collapsed.

The police have booked the owner of Krishna Mining Works and his business partners, Madhusudan Singh and Dilip Keshari, both residents of Obra, on the complaint of Chhotu Yadav, a resident of Parsoi Tola, who said his two brothers are trapped under the rubble, the SP said.

The three are yet to be arrested.

Samajwadi Party's Robertsganj MP, Chotelal Kharwar, alleged that the mine was illegally run by mafia in collusion with the local police.

"There is a possibility that 12 to 15 people are trapped under the stones. Tribals are being killed in many ways, and large-scale illegal mining is being carried out in this area. One or two such incidents occur every month in this region, but how the mining mafia manages everything remains unknown," he said.

Illegal mining is being carried out with the connivance of police and administration officials, the MP alleged.

Kharwar alleged that he was stopped by the police from meeting the kin of the trapped mine workers.

He also demanded Rs 50 lakh in compensation for the victim's family and a government job for each family.