Amid power crisis, workplace accidents pose stiff challenge to Kerala State Electricity Board
With its hands full dealing with an untimely power crisis in July, the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) is now forced to confront another serious
With its hands full dealing with an untimely power crisis in July, the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) is now forced to confront another serious challenge, this time on its home front. Four KSEB staffers and ten contract employees have lost their lives in workplace accidents so far this year, according to the utility. In 81 accidents, employees sustained ‘non-grievous’ injuries, and among the eight major reasons identified for such accidents are infringement of safety rules, over-confidence and carelessness. In 33 instances, the accidents were caused by electric shock. Falls from electric posts were found to be the reason in 24 cases, while 17 accidents were caused when the posts snapped or crashed down.
“The KSEB views with all seriousness the rise in the number of accidents associated with KSEB installations despite repeatedly issuing clear and strong gudelines and organising awareness programmes,” the KSEB management noted in a July 15 internal circular. The KSEB management pinpointed eight reasons for these mishaps: non-compliance with safety rules, carelessness, undue haste in winding up work, over-confidence, ignoring the instructions of field supervisors or carrying out work in their absence, failure to use safety equipment, a lack of familiarity with high-tension and low-tension (HT/LT) networks and shortcomings of the electrical installations. Need for ‘safety culture’ To prevent a recurrence of the accidents, senior officers have been asked to ensure that safety guidelines are stringently followed during work on electrical installations.
Safety officers, chief safety officers and deputy safety commissioners have been directed to initiate stern action if lapses are found. The circular also underscored the need for all Electrical Section Offices to develop a ‘safety culture.’ In recent years, the power utility had been placing emphasis on workplace safety, especially of the field staff. In 2018 for instance, the Capital Investment Plan (CIP) for the 2018-2022 period had a ‘Safety Plan’ where 14,000 fully-equipped safety kits were to be distributed to field staff. With eight fatalities among its staff and ten contract workers due to workplace accidents this year alone.
Since January, 81 accidents have been logged, with primary causes including safety rule violations and carelessness. The KSEB management is urgently addressing the alarming rise in incidents, emphasizing the need for a robust safety culture and strict adherence to guidelines to protect its workforce as it grapples with the dual pressures of service demands and employee safety.
The BriefWire