Bhubaneswar: State Government has taken action in connection with the death of a minor boy who was swept away in a drain in the state capital.
Assistant Engineer Santosh Kumar Das, working in the drainage division of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), has been suspended and departmental disciplinary action has been taken against him.
It may be recalled that a nine-year-old boy was washed away in a drain in unit number 3 area on May 18. The state government took a serious note of the accident when the boy met with such an accident while trying to fetch a balloon floating in the drain. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed grief over the incident and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh for the family of the deceased boy.
State Housing and Urban Development Minister, Krishna Chandra Mohapatra visited the spot and sought a report from the authorities in this regard.
Dr. Mohapatra said strict action would be taken against the culprits in the incident. The authorities also immediately conducted a thorough investigation into the incident and submitted a report.
Action has been taken by the government today after the report was handed over. The report stated that the fence was not installed at the place where the child fell into the drain and was washed away. Shri Das, AE in charge of drain division no. 5, has been blamed for not erecting a fence at such a sensitive place.
Accordingly, the state government has taken strict action and suspended Shri Das today.