KOLLAM: Nine persons were injured when a podium under construction on the Puttingal temple premises at Paravur here collapsed on Monday afternoon. The injured were construction workers who were doing the final touches of the structure which allegedly lacked proper beams and pillars. The incident took place around 3 p.m. during concreting of the roofing. The construction of the podium having a length of 55 feet and height of 17 feet, sponsored by well-wishers on the temple property, had started a few months back.
The injured were identified as Bhadran, 58, of Kanjiramvila, Kalakkode; Suresh, 48, of Puthenkulam; Kuttappan, 55, of Paravur; (all admitted to Thiruvananthapuram MCH), Ganesh, 49, of Perumkulam; Baburajan Pillai, 61, of GG Sadanam, Edayadi; (Parippally MCH), and Sajeev, 39, Kadayil veedu, Oonninmoodu; Raju, 52, of Raju vilasom, Puthenkulam; Raju, 55, Murukalayam, Poothakkulam; and an Assam native Vikas, 18, residing at Chathannoor (Nedungolam taluk hospital).
"A case has been registered against the contractors of the building under sections of IPC 336, 337 and 338 for endangering the life or personal safety of others and causing hurt. More sections will be charged after getting the expert opinion on the failure of the structure," Paravur SI R. Biju, told DC. There were a total of 23 workers at the site in the morning of whom many had left as the work neared completion. The local residents along with fire fighters from Paravur rescued the workers who were trapped under the debris. The temple had witnessed a tragedy in April 2016, when competitive fireworks killed 110 people and left over 700 injured.
