Eight Workers Die After Machine Contacts High-Tension Line in Rajasthan

Eight workers died on Monday after a construction machine touched an overhead high-tension power line in Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district. The incident occurred in Chhapoli village under the Udaipurwati police station area while a narrow road was being built with local participation.

Udaipurwati SHO Rampal said a machine used to mix gravel came into contact with the high-tension line. Electric current passed through the equipment and electrocuted the workers at the site. Five others suffered burn injuries. Police identified the dead as local residents. Four were from Mandawara: Hariram, 30; Mangalchand, 22; Kaluram, 29; and Pawan, 23. Four more were from Chhapoli: Surendra alias Suresh, 30; Mukesh, 27; Fateh Chand, 32; and contractor Vishnu, 38.

The work was taking place near a pond. The site falls on forest land, and local authorities had not granted permission for the road. Villagers had organised the construction through mutual cooperation and donations. An iron pipe attached to the cement mixer struck the 11,000-volt line, sending current into the machine and the people around it.

District Collector Dr Arun Garg and Superintendent of Police Kavendra Singh Sagar reached the spot after the incident. Former minister Rajendra Gudha also visited. Officials inspected the site and checked the condition of the injured. Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma expressed grief and ordered a high-level inquiry. He sought a detailed report from the collector and directed officials to ensure treatment for those injured. Energy Minister Heeralal Nagar said preliminary information indicated the road work was a small private effort undertaken with public participation.

The machine involved was described in some accounts as a gravel mixer or cement mixer. Investigators will confirm the exact equipment and the sequence that brought it into contact with the line. No official figures on the voltage or the precise height of the wire have been released beyond the police description of a high-tension line. The road under construction was a narrow link between Chhapoli and Kadamkund.

Electrocution incidents during informal construction are not uncommon in rural areas where temporary works proceed without full clearances. In this case the absence of formal permission and the proximity of the power line to the work site appear to have combined with the height of the mixer pipe. The collector and police have not yet released a full list of the injured or their hospital status. The inquiry ordered by the chief minister will examine both the immediate cause and the decision to proceed with the work on forest land without approval.

Local residents gathered at the site after the incident. Covered bodies were placed near the machine while officials and villagers stood nearby. The district administration has not announced compensation figures. The chief minister asked Minister Jhabar Singh Kharra to visit the location and provide assistance to the affected families. The road remains incomplete, and the power line is still in place above the unfinished stretch.