Manhole sucks in one more life in heart of Modiland

Shrugging off the blame,Nitin Patel,supervisor of the R & B Department,who had assigned the task to Vala,said: “I had sent Jasvant Makwana to the pumping station and not Vala. Our department was installing a motor there. There was no question of cleaning the manhole. I had only asked them to go and check the flow of water.” Incidentally,both Patel and Makwana were present when Vala died.

The body was later lifted from the manhole with the help of a few locals. Both Makwana and Patel had reportedly fled from the spot after Vala was found dead.

Makwana said they had been sent to check the flow of water. “Vala had lifted the lid and was peeping inside when he slipped,” he said. But when asked how Vala fell,he replied: “There was gas inside the pool,which led to the mishap.”

After much persuasion,the Gandhinagar police finally registered an FIR against Patel and the Roads and Buildings Department late in the evening. Vala’s brother said: “The police were not registering the case. The postmortem had begun without an FIR. When we wanted to lodge the complaint,the concerned officer told us that the matter needs to be investigated first before a complaint is lodged. Where is the law that states that investigation must be done before filing an FIR?”

Zakir Kazi from the Kamdar Swasthya Seva Mandal said: “The worker was sent to a station that was shut for many days. The pool was 15 feet deep. He was sent to clean it. The manhole was very small and no man can accidentally fall inside. When we saw the hole,gases were still coming out of it. Manual cleaning of manholes is illegal. Departmental negligence led to Vala’s death.”

Babu Vala (55),the deceased’s brother,said: “Our entire family survives by cleaning manholes. We are often sent down to clean the gutters. We go as deep as 10 feet. Inside,the atmosphere alters between hot and cold. A strong feeling overwhelms us often when we step inside.

Babu further that he and many others like him do not wear any protective gear while cleaning the manholes.

Sunday’s death has once again highlighted the fact that manual scavenging is rampant in Gujarat and still remains a dangerous profession.