RailEnquiry

The recent accident at the metro rail site near Pachaiyappa’s College — in which one worker was killed and six others injured — was caused by a human error, the preliminary investigation report with Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has concluded.“The operator mishandled the crane,” V. Somasundaram, chief general manager (construction), CMRL told The Hindu on Monday.The preliminary report, according to CMRL, also points to inappropriate use of the machine by its operator. “The reinforcement cage that was being lowered did not get placed right, as it got caught in the pit. The operator jerked the cage this way and that, horizontally. But cranes, by design, are built to lift the load vertically. Since a horizontal movement was performed the reinforcement cage fell,” he said.The investigation, being carried out by the General Consultant to CMRL, seeks to study in detail the cause for the accident. The crane involved in the accident was a Tata TFC 280 model. The crane operator was an employee of Valecha Engineering, a sub-contractor engaged by Larsen & Toubro (L&T), the contractors constructing the Pachaiyappa’s College metro station. According to sources with the contractor, the crane operator Amalesh Yadav from Bihar is a 22-year-old with over a year’s experience in operating cranes. Police are yet to find Amalesh, who has been absconding since the accident.