Raipur, Oct 7 (IANS) A senior official of the Gannon Dunkerley and Company Ltd (GDCL), which was constructing the 257-metre chimney for the Balco power plant at Chhattisgarh’s Korba town, was arrested Wednesday for the Sep 23 chimney collapse that killed 45 workers.
“After a detailed interrogation of GDCL project manager Manoj Sharma for the past few days, we finally arrested him today (Wednesday) for the Balco mishap,” District Superintendent of Police (Korba) Ratanlal Dangi told IANS.

Vedanta Resources Plc-controlled Bharat Aluminium Company Ltd (Balco), in which the Indian government holds a 49 percent stake, had awarded a Chinese firm, Shandong Electric Power Construction Corporation (SEPCO), the task of constructing two thermal power plants of 600 mw each at Korba, 250 km from here.

Later, the SEPCO outsourced the construction of the chimney for the power plant to GDCL.

Dangi refused to give details of the charges under which Sharma, a resident of Haryana, was arrested but police sources said they had got enough proof during interrogation that sub-standard construction material was used for the chimney.

The police have, meanwhile, also interrogated about 20 Chinese engineers employed by SEPCO at Korba town.

“We have interrogated a few Chinese engineers of SEPCO since Monday regarding the Balco tragedy and have also collected some documents,” Vivek Sharma, police station in charge of Balco Nagar in Korba, told IANS over phone.

He said the interrogation was part of a police case lodged at Balco Nagar on the directive of the Chhattisgarh government.

The Chhattisgarh government has also ordered a judicial probe, but is yet to announce the name of the judge.