Eight labourers were killed and five others sustained injuries after a road construction machine came in contact with an overhead high-tension power line in Chapoli village of Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district on Monday morning.According to police, the incident occurred around 10 am when the labourers were shifting a cement mixer machine to another location when the hydraulic jack of the machine came in contact with a overhead live power line.Jhunjhunu Collector Arun Garg said the villagers had started constructing a road connecting the village to Kadam Kund temple as the existing road was in a dilapidated condition. However, since the road passed through a forest area and the forest guards were occupied with panchayat election duties, they had not received the required permission to carry out the work. People gather at the site of the accident in Jhunjhunu on Monday.(credit: ANI video grab)“However, the villagers arranged some financial assistance at their own level and started the road construction work themselves. During the work, the cement mixer came in contact with a live wire. The labourers who were pushing the machine got electrocuted,” Garg said.The deceased have been identified as Hariram Gurjar (30), Mangalchand Gurjar (22), Kaluram Gurjar (29) and Pawan Gurjar (23), all residents of Haleda Mandawara village and Vishnu Saini (38), Surendra alias Suresh Saini (30), Mukesh Saini (27) and Fatehchand Saini (32), all residents of Chapoli. Vishnu was also the contractor.One of the injured labourers, Gidaram Saini, told the media, “We were working in Chapoli. We were in the process of pushing the machine to another location when it came in contact with the power line, resulting in the accident.”Following the incident, villagers staged a protest and demanded compensation for the families of the deceased. Former minister Rajendra Gudha said the victims belonged to economically weaker families and demanded compensation of Rs 20-25 lakh for each family.Story continues below this adUrban Development and Housing Minister Jhabar Singh Kharra also reached the spot and later visited the hospital to take stock of the situation.Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma expressed grief over the incident and ordered a high-level inquiry. He sought a detailed report from the district collector and directed officials to ensure prompt and proper treatment of the injured.“Saddened by the loss of lives due to a mishap in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan. My condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover at the earliest. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each of those who lost their lives,” PM Narendra Modi tweeted.Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president Govind Singh Dotasra also expressed grief over the incident in a post on X, calling the deaths of the eight workers and injuries to others deeply saddening. He questioned how such negligence could occur during road construction and demanded an impartial investigation to establish accountability.Story continues below this adDotasra also urged the state government to provide adequate compensation to the families of the deceased and wished for the speedy recovery of those injured.Energy Minister Heeralal Nagar said that according to preliminary information, the road was being constructed with public participation and the work was being carried out privately on a small scale.He said the work was underway on a narrow road connecting Chhapoli to Kadam Kund.Nagar said technical officials had been directed to visit the spot and ascertain the circumstances that led to the accident. “If any departmental or technical lapse is found, action will be taken,” he said.Story continues below this adFormer chief minister Ashok Gehlot expressed grief over the deaths and demanded an investigation to determine how the accident occurred and who was responsible.As per the state government’s policy, a compensation of Rs 5 lakh is provided in cases of death due to electrocution. Additionally, Rs 2 lakh has been announced from the Prime Minister’s Office, while Rs 5 lakh will be provided under the PM Ayushman Arogya Yojana, taking the announced assistance to Rs 12 lakh per deceased victim, subject to applicable eligibility and scheme provisions.