The Delhi HC also asked it to pay Rs1 lakh to those who suffered fracture injuries in the incident. 27 labourers were injured, five of them seriously, when the under-construction foot overbridge caved in yesterday.
The Delhi high court today directed the city government to pay Rs3 lakh to the labourers who were seriously injured when a foot overbridge collapsed outside the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, the main venue of the Commonwealth Games.
The court also asked it to pay Rs1 lakh to those who suffered fracture injuries in the incident. 27 labourers were injured, five of them seriously, when the under-construction foot overbridge caved in yesterday.
A division bench headed by chief justice Dipak Misra and Justice Manmohan came down heavily on the Labour department of the Delhi Government for failing to monitor as to whether the workmen were provided with adequate safety equipment at the site or not.
The court directed the deputy commissioner of police (crime branch) to investigate the matter.
"Actually your officers are not working... . Keeping in view the gravity of the accident, the DCP (crime branch) is directed to investigate and proceed as per law," the court said.
The bench also directed the deputy labour commissioner and assistant labour commissioner of Delhi government to visit
all construction sites within a week and file an affidavit by
the next date of hearing.
The court passed the directions while hearing a public interest litigation filed by People's Union for Democratic Rights.
The NGO sought the court's direction to Delhi government to pay basic wages to labourers working at various construction sites for the Commonwealth Games projects.
The collapse of the 95-metre long hanging bridge, which was intended to be a showpiece and connect the parking lot of the stadium with other side of the street in Lodhi Road area, was an embarrassment for the government at a time when it is facing questions from the CWG Federation over preparedness for the Games.
The government had announced a compensation of Rs1 lakh to each of those who sustained grievous injuries and Rs50,000 to the other injured.
The court warned the Labour department officers of contempt proceedings in case they failed to comply with the orders.
Similarly, it asked the concerned central government departments to follow the orders with regard to safety measures.
"Have you filed the FIR against contractor M/s PNR Infra Projects Ltd or the principal employer," the bench asked the state government's counsel Najmi Waziri.
Waziri, on his part, told the court that an FIR has been registered.
The bench also directed that the enhanced payment should be made through bank draft to legal representatives of labourers as they are undergoing treatment at hospitals.
It also asked them to provide adequate medical treatment to the victims.
The bench, meanwhile, directed the government to recover the ex-gratia amounts from the contractor and officials.
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