Contractor, WASA employee charged over death
Nearly naked and covered with a black, foul-smelling muck, Shafiq Masih struggles out of a sewer he has just cleaned by hand in an upmarket district of Lahore. PHOTO: AFP
Following the legal procedure, the police handed over the body of a 17-year-old boy who lost his life while cleaning a sewer due to exposure to poisonous gas to his family on Saturday.
The incident had happened in D-Type Colony on Friday. The police registered a case against a contractor, Hasnain Chatha, and two employees of the Water and Sanitation Agency. Officials said efforts were under way to apprehend them.
According to the complaint filed by Sajid Masih, brother of the deceased Asad, a resident of Khushal Town, the contractor had been engaged by WASA for sewer cleaning.
While cleaning drains near D-Type Colony accompanied by machine operator Javed, Asad was ordered to enter the drain without wearing any protective mask.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 16th, 2023.