Four held in Gujarat, days after 6 workers died due to inhalation of chemical fumes leaked from tanker

Surat, Jan 8: Days after six workers died due to the inhalation of toxic fumes that leaked from a tanker in an industrial area in Surat, police have arrested four persons for the alleged illegal discharge of chemical waste under various charges including culpable homicide, an official said on Saturday.

Six factory workers died and 22 others were hospitalised on January 6 after they inhaled toxic fumes leaked from the chemical tanker parked near a factory in the Surat district.

The workers were in the dyeing factory, located in the Sachin industrial area when the incident occurred. The four persons arrested on Friday include two transporters, a bank employee and a garage owner, a crime branch official said. They were arrested by the Surat crime branch with the help of police of Vadodara and Bharuch, he added.

The official said that one Ashish Gupta, a transporter and a partner in a firm, had supplied the industrial chemical waste to two others- Jaipratap Tomar and another person identified as Yadav, for disposal.

Another person is identified as Premsagar Gupta, who had accompanied Tomar and Yadav in the tanker to the Sachin GIDC area, the official said, adding that Premsagar had in the past arrested in connection with prohibition and betting-related cases. Tomar works in the loan department of a finance bank, while Yadav runs a garage, the official said.

An FIR was registered at the Sachin GIDC police station against unidentified persons under sections 304 (Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder), rash and negligent act endangering human lives (336, 337, and 338), rash and negligent act involving poisonous substance (284), voluntarily corrupt water of public spring or reservoir (277), making atmosphere noxious to health (278), criminal conspiracy (120 (B) of the Indian Penal Code, and sections of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.