Kolkata, Jan 28 (IANS): Two workers were killed while three others fell ill following an accident at a gas excavation plant of a private entity at the industrial township of Durgapur in West Bengal’s West Burdwan district on Tuesday.

The accident happened while one of the two deceased workers fell in the waste pit of the plant which was filled with water. Another worker while attempting to rescue his colleague also fell into the waste-pit soon.

The two deceased workers have been identified as Akash Badyakar (25) and Anup Sarkar (26). They were somehow taken out of the waste-pit and shifted to a local hospital first under critical conditions. However, as their medical conditions deteriorated they were shifted to another private super-speciality hospital but both died soon.

Three other workers, while attempting to rescue the duo, fell sick because of the poisonous gas being emitted from the waste pit. They are also under treatment now.

While Badyakar is a resident of Kanksa in the same district, Sarkar is a resident of Malda district. Both were contractual workers attached to the plant.

The local people and the workers have blamed the management of the plant for lackadaisical safety arrangements at the plant which resulted in the unfortunate death of the two workers.

“Previously too there had been complaints by the workers about the lack of safety measures, which the management of the plant totally overlooked. They will now have to take responsibility for the unfortunate death of the two workers,” claimed a worker of the plant.

A spokesman of the plant, however, said that the management will not shy away from their responsibility because of this unfortunate mishap and will stand by the families of the two victim workers.