Four contract workers at the Steel Authority of India Limited’s Rourkela steel plant in eastern India died on Wednesday after a suspected gas leak, the state-owned company said in a statement. The four men were employees of private firm M/S Star Constructions and were engaged in maintenance work at the plant’s coal chemicals department, SAIL said.

”The workers felt unwell at around 9 a.m. on 06.01.2021 and were immediately rushed to the ICU of Ispat General Hospital (IGH) at Rourkela for treatment,” the company said in a statement.

”A high-level committee has been formed to inquire into the cause of the incident and all emergency protocols have been immediately activated in the plant.” The inspector general of police Kavita Jalan told Reuters that the police were investigating the deaths.

The plant was functioning normally, public relations officer Dhirendra Mishra said. SAIL shares fell after the news and were down 2.8% on India’s National Stock Exchange as of 0900 GMT.

First Published:Jan 6, 2021 3:57 PM IST