Pimpri-Chinchwad police have arrested the project head of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Pvt Ltd and booked a safety officer in connection with the deaths of nine people in the collapse of a waste-to-energy plant building in Moshi, Pune. The arrests and booking follow charges of culpable homicide.
The incident occurred on July 8 when a large mound of legacy waste, destabilized by heavy rains, collapsed onto the three-storey administrative building. Legacy waste refers to accumulated, untreated solid garbage and industrial byproducts left in old landfills or dumpsites for extended periods. At the time of the collapse, 23 employees of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Limited, a firm contracted by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), were inside the building.
Five employees on the first floor managed to escape immediately after the accident. A subsequent joint operation involving the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Army, the PCMC fire brigade, and the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) successfully rescued nine workers alive. Tragically, nine bodies were later recovered from the debris.
Arrests and Charges
Ashokkumar Siyaramsharan Gupta, 59, the project head of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Pvt Ltd, has been arrested. Vijay Ramrao Sapkal, 38, the safety officer, has been booked. Both have been charged under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) related to culpable homicide not amounting to murder and acts endangering life or personal safety.
According to a Pimpri Chinchwad police officer, Gupta sustained minor injuries and has been arrested, while Sapkal was injured in the incident and is currently receiving hospital treatment. The FIR was registered following a complaint by officials from the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. The complaint cited a failure to implement adequate safety measures despite knowledge of the risks posed by heavy rainfall to the sanitary landfill at the site.
Company’s Response and Investigation
Mahendra Ananthula, president of Antony Waste Handling Cell Ltd, the operator of the plant, described the incident as an “act of God” attributed to extreme rainfall. The company has pledged to cover medical expenses for the injured and provide compensation of Rs 25 lakh to the families of the deceased. They have also offered employment to one family member and coverage of education expenses for minor children of the deceased.
The Maharashtra government has ordered a high-level technical inquiry into the building collapse. A preliminary inquiry by the civic body indicated that an occupancy certificate had been issued only for the ground floor of the building at the firm’s request. PCMC Commissioner Vijay Suryavanshi stated that while all trapped individuals have been recovered, the operations were significantly hampered by the presence of toxic gases and the need to carefully dismantle unstable sections of the structure and manage the massive waste mound.
The FIR lodged by the PCMC’s environment department alleges that Gupta and Sapkal were responsible for monitoring the stability of the sanitary landfill, assessing risks from heavy rainfall, conducting inspections, and ensuring safety measures to prevent a garbage slide. Despite awareness of the potential danger, the FIR states, they allegedly failed to take necessary precautions, leading to the collapse. Both accused were reportedly inside the administrative building when it collapsed.
The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation has also initiated departmental action against two senior civic officials, including the chief engineer and an executive engineer, for alleged lapses in monitoring safety and compliance at the Moshi waste depot.
The Chenab Times News Desk