Prevent electric accidents

The electrocution of 35 persons in the last two years is a cause of concern for one and all, especially the concerned Kashmir Power distribution corporation Limited (KPDCL) as it has lost 25 employees in the year 2021 and 2022, which include regular employees as well as Permanent Daily Labourer (PDL), Temporary Daily Labourer (TDL), Casual Labourers and Daily Rated Workers. It has come to the fore that PDL/TDL/CL/DRW have become the major victim of electric accidents in Kashmir in the past two years as the deaths are highest among all. Of the total 35 deaths in the last two years, 19 among them are PDL/TDL/CL/DRW. The number of fatal accidents faced by PDL/TDL/CL/DRW indicates the lack of training and awareness among these employees. It is quite disturbing to see that the poor employees serving the department for a long time now are still lacking the awareness regarding how to deal with the electricity. Several people have also suffered injuries in the electric accidents across Kashmir. 54 electric accidents in the past two years are giving a sense that the training among the ground workers is imperative at this juncture with an aim to reduce such accidents and subsequently prevent the further loss of lives. It is the time when the concerned authorities should hold a series of awareness camps and training programmes on priority to ensure that ground workers are made aware about the situation they are dealing with, which would help in preventing the electric accidents across the Valley.