Two MSEDCL wiremen, including an outsourced worker and a regular employee, died in separate electrocution incidents in Jalgaon district within 27 days, prompting an inquiry into safety during electricity maintenance operations.
The first death occurred on September 28 in the Kusumb area, where outsourced worker Mahesh Apar was carrying out repair work on an electricity pole. According to the report, he allegedly came into contact with a live wire and suffered a fatal electric shock.
The second incident took place on October 25 in the MIDC area of Jalgaon. Kiran Sapkale, a regular Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) employee, died while undertaking maintenance-related work.
A senior MSEDCL official said Sapkale and his team had been carrying out routine maintenance and repairs on a Sunday. Power supply to industries is typically shut under a staggered schedule during such work, the official said. After completing the task and while returning to the office, Sapkale noticed a creeper wrapped around an electricity pole.
The official said Sapkale cut the creeper at its base and then attempted to remove it completely. Believing that the line was de-energised, he climbed the pole, received an electric shock, lost his balance and fell. He later died from the injuries sustained in the incident.
The two cases occurred in different parts of Jalgaon district and involved different employment arrangements. Apar was working as an outsourced worker, while Sapkale was a regular MSEDCL employee. The deaths have consequently brought attention to the risks faced by field workers responsible for maintaining electricity distribution infrastructure, although the exact causes of both incidents have not yet been established.
I A Mulani, chief engineer of MSEDCL’s Jalgaon zone, said the deaths had affected the utility. “It is extremely disturbing to have lost two of our capable men while on duty. All prescribed safety measures were in place, but the exact cause of the accidents is yet to be established,” Mulani said.
Mulani said an inquiry by the electrical inspector was under way and that MSEDCL would comment further after the reports were submitted. The inquiry is expected to establish the circumstances surrounding both fatalities and examine whether the prescribed safety procedures were followed during the maintenance work.
No final findings from the electrical inspector’s inquiry had been released in the report. MSEDCL’s further response will follow the submission of the inquiry reports.
