Hyderabad: Taking serious note of the Sigachi Industry blast on June 30 that left 46 workers dead, the Telangana high court, on Thursday, asked the state govt for status of the investigation and if any arrests had been made in the case so far.It was hearing a PIL filed by Kalapala Babu Rao, a retired scientist from IICT. The petitioner had sought to know if the Telangana govt had booked cases under any other laws apart from the criminal case registered by police and suo-moto cognizance taken by NGT.While the state told the high court that it had formed committees to inquire into the accident and suggest preventive measures, the division bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohiuddin asked if that prevented the state from making any arrests. He directed all concerned govt departments to submit detailed affidavits in the next three weeks, even as the state requested for four week’s timeThe CJ ordered the departments to record every piece of information related to the incident — number of workers employed, number of those present at the site at the time of the incident, action taken, compensation paid, etc. “We never know somebody close to one of us will be a victim of such accidents. It’s the duty of all of us to ensure that not only is there action on the concerned as per law, but the regulatory regime also becomes stronger. Only then can such incidents be prevented,” the CJ said, recollecting his days at the Jharkhand high court which notified eco-sensitive zones in the state despite tough opposition from all corners.“Lapses in regulatory regimes result in such accidents. Entertaining such PILs is not only to ensure the law is followed, but also to ensure the regulatory regime enforces the law with due diligence,” the Chief Justice added.The petitioner’s counsel, Vasudha Nagaraj, while arguing the case highlighted how despite the lapse of a month, eight workers are still missing and compensation to the families of victims has been delayed. “Most of the workers belong to different states and their families are now forced to run around to get the compensation,” she argued.Assuring the counsel that the court will take care of the matter the high directed the state to “not take the PIL as adversary litigation and to view it as an opportunity to address a larger picture.”
