3-member committee to probe into VSP mishap

VisakhapatnamL A three-member committee has been appointed to investigate the causes of the accident at Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP).

The committee members, arrived from Bokaro Steel Plant on Tuesday evening, have been tasked with conducting a comprehensive inquiry into the causes of the accident, assessing safety protocols and examining the ground-level situation related to the incident before submitting its report to the Centre.

Soon after their arrival, the committee members held a meeting with Union Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries, Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma.

During the review meeting, the Union Minister discussed the preliminary findings concerning the VSP accident, prevailing on-site conditions, existing safety measures, and steps required to prevent similar incidents in the future. Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma emphasised the need for a thorough and impartial investigation to identify the mishap’s root cause and recommend corrective measures.

The Government of India constituted the inquiry committee with Priya Ranjan, Director-in-Charge (DIC), Bokaro Steel Plant, SAIL, Jitendra Kumar, Chief General Manager (CGM), SAIL, and Gopal Singh, former Chief General Manager (Ex-CGM), SAIL, as its members.

The committee is expected to conduct a detailed inspection of the accident site and examine all technical, safety and operational aspects before submitting its findings and recommendations to the Ministry of Steel for the next course of action.