Three contract workers who died after collapsing inside a sewage tank at Tata Electronics’ factory near Rayakottai in Tamil Nadu’s Krishnagiri district were killed by toxic gas exposure, post-mortem examinations have confirmed, according to a report by Dinamalar.
The workers were identified as Sarathikumar, 25, from Belrampatti in Dharmapuri district; Akmal, 28, from Thinnur in Panchapalli; and Kaveri, 31, from Jambuth. They were engaged by Nalco Water, the company contracted to undertake cleaning work at the facility.
The incident occurred on November 9 at Tata Electronics’ factory in Vanniyapuram, near Rayakottai. The plant manufactures components for iPhone mobile phones. The three workers had entered a sewage tank to carry out cleaning operations when they lost consciousness and fell inside, according to the report.
All three died in the incident. The deaths have brought attention to the risks associated with workers entering confined spaces such as sewage tanks, where the accumulation of toxic gases can cause loss of consciousness and death. The source report, however, does not identify the specific gas involved or provide details about the safety equipment, gas testing or ventilation arrangements at the site.
Krishnagiri District Collector Dinesh Kumar ordered that the bodies undergo post-mortem examination. The examinations were conducted on the night before the report was published, and the findings confirmed that toxic gas exposure was the cause of death for all three workers.
The workers were contract employees of Nalco Water rather than direct employees of Tata Electronics, according to the report. The arrangement places the incident within the wider chain of responsibility involved in industrial maintenance work, where large manufacturing facilities rely on external agencies for specialised cleaning and upkeep. The available report does not state whether any arrests, departmental inquiry, compensation decision or regulatory action has been announced.
The report also does not provide details of the rescue operation, the duration for which the workers were inside the tank, or whether other workers were present at the time. It records the post-mortem finding and identifies the contracted agency responsible for the cleaning work.
The autopsy confirmation establishes toxic gas exposure as the cause of death, while further details about the circumstances of the tank entry, workplace safety procedures and official action remain to be reported by the authorities. The district administration’s post-mortem order was the latest official step cited in the report.
