odisha news: Bhubaneswar, (Reporterspen), Jan 18: The bodies of three workers, who went missing following a tragic accident at a cement plant in Rajgangpur, Odisha, were recovered on Saturday after a 36-hour rescue operation. The deceased have been identified as Susanta Rout (58), Ranjit Bhol (24), and Dashrath Patra (42), who were working under a contractor at the plant.
The workers were feared trapped under debris when a coal hopper, a large iron structure used to store coal before it is transferred to a boiler, collapsed around 5:30 PM on January 16, damaging the operator room located beneath the coal bunker. The coal hopper was operated by a third-party vendor.
According to sources, the bodies have been sent to Rourkela Government Hospital for postmortem. Sundargarh Sub Collector Dasarathi Saraboo confirmed that families of the deceased have filed FIRs at the Rajgangpur police station.
The company has announced a compensation package of Rs 25 lakh for the family of Dashrath Patra, along with Rs 10 lakh in insurance, a quarter, a job for his wife, and free education for his two sons until Class XII. However, compensation details for the other two workers are still pending.
Bhol is survived by his wife and 18-month-old daughter, while Rout leaves behind his wife and two twin sons, aged 20, who are also employed at Dalmia Cement, Rajgangpur. Initially, 64 workers were rescued safely, and efforts continued through Thursday night and Friday to locate the missing three.
