Key facts
- Seven workers killed, five injured in quarry boulder collapse near Bengaluru
- D K Shivakumar promised crackdown on quarry safety lapses
- Authorities to examine licensing and safety compliance
- Incident raises concerns about migrant worker safety in the sector
Seven workers were killed and five injured on Tuesday after boulders crashed onto labourers at a stone quarry near Bengaluru, in one of the deadliest industrial accidents the region has seen in recent memory. The collapse occurred without warning, leaving rescuers to pull victims from beneath the debris.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar swiftly responded to the tragedy, promising a crackdown on safety lapses in the quarrying sector. Authorities said they would examine whether the quarry was operating with proper licences and following mandated safety protocols — questions that arise with grim regularity after such accidents.
Stone quarrying is a major industry on the outskirts of Bengaluru, supplying construction materials to one of India's fastest-growing cities. The sector has long been criticised for inadequate safety oversight, with workers — many of them migrant labourers — often operating in hazardous conditions with little protective equipment or regulatory scrutiny.
The incident is expected to trigger a wider review of quarry operations in Karnataka. Opposition parties and labour rights groups have called for immediate inspections of active quarry sites, while families of the deceased are awaiting news on compensation and accountability.