Sri Vijaya Puram, Apr 16: In a chilling incident that underscores gaping holes in safety protocol, a 55-year-old daily wage worker with the Electricity Department in Andaman & Nicobar Islands lost his life after falling from an electric pole, allegedly while doing work beyond his assigned duties and without any protective gear.
The tragedy unfolded at 4:25 PM on Tuesday, directly opposite the Manglutan Electricity Site Office. Eyewitnesses say Lazrus Kerketta was seen climbing a ladder placed against the pole with no harness, no helmet, and no lineman’s belt – just bare hands and untrained caution. Moments later, he slipped and fell head first onto the ground.
Bystanders rushed him to the Primary Health Centre at Manglutan. Due to the severity of his injuries, he was referred to G.B. Pant Hospital in Port Blair, where he died during treatment.
But the bigger shock came afterward: Why was a daily-wage mazdoor, not trained to perform high-risk electrical repairs, sent up the pole in the first place?
Initial reports suggest that a lineman was present at the site and allegedly instructed Lazrus to ascend the pole. The Junior Engineer, responsible for overseeing such operations, was reportedly absent. Staff members speaking on condition of anonymity confirmed that mazdoors are not qualified or authorised to perform technical tasks involving climbing poles – a responsibility limited to trained linemen.
With no official supervision and a blatant disregard for safety protocols, the question is no longer just how Lazrus died, but why he was put in that position at all.
A First Information Report has now been filed under Sections 106(1) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, against both the lineman and the Junior Engineer for criminal negligence leading to death.
Family members and local residents are demanding justice. Their grief is compounded by the sense of betrayal, a man who showed up for a routine wage-paying job ended up performing a risky task without gear, guidance, or choice.
The incident has sparked conversations across departments, with growing calls for strict enforcement of labour safety measures, especially for temporary and contract workers.
For now, Lazrus’s family waits for answers and action. His death may have been preventable, but it has served as a brutal wake-up call for the administration to take worker safety out of dusty manuals and into real enforcement.
