TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: Holidaying in Goa with family and colleagues ended on a tragic note for a group of tourists from Trichur-Kerala after a 46-year old man met with a watery grave in a sewerage manhole under construction near the Power House, Aquem-Margao last night, raising questions over safety precautions adopted at the work site.
C G Xavier lost his life when he is believed to have accidentally fallen into the six-metre deep pit filled with water last night.
DySP Mohan Naik told media that the deceased has been identified as C G Xavier, an LIC Agent who had come down on holiday with his wife and two children and a group of 40 colleagues on April 7 and were putting up in a hotel near the Margao railway station.
There was panic in the group when the deceased failed to return to the hotel room last night. Workers employed at the sewerage line construction site found a body floating on Wednesday morning and immediately contacted police.
Sources said though the contractor dug a six-metre deep manhole, no precaution was taken to barricade the place or to illuminate the area, warning public of danger. It is suspected that the deceased might have unknowingly walked along and landed inside the pit before getting drowned.
Margao PI Sudesh Naik said a case of accidental death has been filed and investigations are in progress. Late evening, the police registered a case of negligence against the contractor.
PSI Diago Gracias of Margao police is conducting further investigation in the case.