Nagpur: Barely days after the electrocution of 60-year-old Afroz Begum in Auliya Nagar exposed glaring safety lapses in the Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s (NMC) Amrut 2.0 sewerage project, another damaged underground power cable has surfaced at a nearby worksite, intensifying allegations of poor supervision by the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department.Residents of Galli No. 1 in Taj Nagar alleged that an underground electricity cable was damaged during sewer line excavation several months ago but remained unattended despite repeated complaints. They said electric current was passing through the ground and waterlogged patches, posing a constant threat to residents, especially children.Seventy-year-old Saraswati Kaithwas, who said she repeatedly received electric shocks outside her house, had a narrow escape. “I kept telling my son that I was getting shocks while walking outside. My grandchildren play here every day. If something had happened to them, who would have taken responsibility?” she said.Residents claimed they reported the hazard at least twice, but no action was taken. The problem was resolved only on Saturday after local corporator Rupali Thakur visited the locality following fresh complaints.Speaking to TOI, Thakur said she immediately summoned officials from the NMC electrical department, MSEDCL and the Amrut contractor. “The damaged underground cable was disconnected from the main power supply, and a temporary overhead connection was provided. The contractor was directed to rectify the defect in the presence of officials,” she said.The similarity between the two incidents has intensified scrutiny of the PHE department headed by Superintending Engineer Shweta Banerjee. Civic sources alleged that despite overseeing nearly Rs900 crore worth of the South Sewerage Project and Pora River Pollution Abatement works, senior-level site inspections are rare, with execution and monitoring largely left to contractors and junior engineers. Banerjee did not respond to TOI’s calls or messages.The latest incident comes even before NMC has completed its inquiry into Afroz Begum’s death. Preliminary findings indicate that a contractor allegedly damaged an underground power cable during sewer excavation and failed to inform either the PHE or electrical department. Residents there, too, had reportedly complained of electric shocks, but the warnings went unheeded until the fatal accident.With one life already lost and another tragedy narrowly averted, questions are mounting over whether NMC’s biggest infrastructure projects are being executed without adequate technical oversight. Residents are demanding criminal action against erring contractors and accountability from officials responsible for supervision, warning that unless systemic failures are addressed, another fatality could be only a matter of time.
