The management of a sponge iron factory in Ramgarh district, Jharkhand, has signed a compensation agreement with the families of three engineers who died in a turbine explosion, following a 14-hour protest and negotiations that concluded late on Saturday.

Under the agreement, each family will receive ₹30 lakh as compensation and ₹1 lakh for cremation and last-rites expenses, Labour Superintendent Ramgarh Anil Kumar Ranjan said. The agreement was signed in the presence of Labour Enforcement Officer Chandan Kumar Das, local leaders and villagers, he said.

The victims and the incident

The deceased engineers were identified as Sanjiv Kumar Keshari, 50, of Ranchi, Vineet Kumar Mahto, 25, of Kunda village in Bokaro, and Abhishek Pandey of Garhwa. They died after suffering severe burn injuries in a blaze at the captive power plant of Maa Chinnamastika Ispat in Hehal village around midnight on Friday, officials said.

Another employee, Tarun Rajwar, was injured in the incident and is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Ranchi. Chief Factory Inspector Manish Sinha said his condition was stable, and the factory management had been directed to provide better treatment facilities.

According to eyewitnesses, a large number of workers were present at the factory when the incident occurred.

Cause under investigation

Officials said the turbine exploded following overheating of a control panel. The exact cause of the fire and explosion is being investigated, police said.

Sinha said a two-member team comprising a factory inspector and the Chotanagpur deputy chief inspector will investigate the incident.

Protest and demands

The deaths triggered a 14-hour protest by villagers and family members, who blocked the factory gate and refused to allow the bodies to be removed until their demands were addressed. The protesters sought compensation, a job for a relative of each victim, a high-level probe, and a safety audit of the plant.

Bargaining parties included Barkagaon MLA Roshan Lal Choudhary, JKLM general secretary Giri Shankar Mahto, BJP district president Sanjiv Kumar Babla, and villagers. Mahto said, "The management has agreed to immediately pay Rs 30 lakh compensation and Rs 1 lakh for last rites to each family. We have also demanded a safety audit of the plant."

Grieving family

Vineet Kumar Mahto's father, 75-year-old farmer Nunu Mahto, broke down after signing the agreement. He had arrived from Bokaro with his wife, Manju Devi, 68. Vineet is survived by his wife Mamta Devi, 22, two-year-old daughter Girisha Kumari, and five-month-old son Anmol.

"We don't want money; we want our son back. He was our only hope," Vineet's father said.

The bodies of the engineers were subsequently sent for post-mortem, police said.