3rd Delhi Metro mishap in 10 days, one dead

Delhi Metro’s tryst with accidents continues.

A labourer lost his life at a metro construction site when a steel beam accidentally fell on him while it was being lifted by a crane in West Delhi on Wednesday. This is the third accident in 10 days at a metro construction site.

On July 12, six persons were killed and 15 people injured when a pillar at an under-construction metro bridge collapsed near Lady Sri Ram College in South Delhi’s Lajpat Nagar. A day after the incident, at least six persons were injured at the same site while clearing debris.

Wednesday’s incident took place at 5.45 am at Ashok Park metro station in the Punjabi Bagh area. The victim, Vicky Singh, was rushed to the nearby Maharaja Agarsen Hospital, where he was declared “brought dead”. He was a native of Uttar Pradesh.

In its defence, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said the death was an accident and not caused by structural collapse. “The beam was being lifted for staging work at the station when the incident occurred. The station is part of the under-construction Inderlok-Mundka line,” DMRC chief public relations officer Anuj Dayal said. “Vicky was guiding the crane movement and prima facie it appears that the beam hit his shoulder,” he said. The incident is under probe.