Kathmandu, November 13
Milan Kumar Nembang Limbu of Ilam has been unable to return home despite completing his treatment after suffering severe electric shock injuries at his workplace. He remains at Kirtipur Burn Hospital because the main contractor has not paid his medical expenses.
Milan was electrocuted on August 26 while working at a restaurant under construction in Kupandol Height, Lalitpur. He was employed through Infinity Engineering Solution and came into contact with a high-voltage electric wire while going to the rooftop to collect materials.
His colleagues rescued him and took him to Kirtipur Burn Hospital for treatment.
Although doctors have discharged him after a prolonged hospital stay, he cannot leave because the treatment bills remain unpaid. Milan said his employer and contractor had promised to cover the expenses but have since stopped responding.
“I have been discharged, but I cannot go home because the contractors have not come,” he said. “I am having to stay in the hospital like a prisoner.”
About a month after Milan’s accident, another worker, 18-year-old Devaraj Thing of Makwanpur, suffered serious electric shock injuries at the same construction site.
In the accident on September 23, Devaraj lost the toes of both feet. His right hand has undergone multiple surgeries, and he remains under treatment at the same hospital.
According to his uncle, Lab Kumar Thing, another worker had also suffered an electric shock at the site before Milan’s accident. That worker was discharged after treatment and returned home.
He alleged that the construction site failed to improve its safety arrangements despite the earlier incidents, resulting in further accidents involving two workers.
Lab Kumar said the company and contractors had initially promised to cover the medical expenses and provided some advance money. However, they later stopped making payments, leaving the injured workers and their families struggling.
“The contractor initially visited the hospital and promised to bear the treatment costs. But now he does not answer calls,” he said. “When we send messages, he says he will come and pay, but he never does.”
The families have been borrowing money to cover medicines and other hospital expenses.
“Even arranging ordinary meals for the patients has become difficult. Milan cannot leave the hospital because the bills have not been paid, while Devaraj is still undergoing treatment. Neither the company nor the contractor is responding,” Lab Kumar said.
Devaraj’s condition is particularly serious. His relatives said he had undergone as many as eight surgeries on his right hand. He has also sustained serious injuries to his neck and other parts of his body.
“He has just turned 18 and is now facing such a condition. We do not even know whether he will be able to work as before,” his uncle said. “He has lost the toes on both feet and the fingers of his hand. Yet the company responsible for treatment and compensation has gone out of contact.”
Complaint filed at labour office, police accused of refusing to register case
After the company and contractors stopped covering the treatment costs, the victims’ families approached the authorities.
They jointly filed a complaint at the Labour and Employment Office in Teku against the employer and contractor.
In their complaint, they accused the company of making workers perform their duties without minimum safety measures, failing to provide accident insurance, attempting to conceal details of the accidents and abandoning injured workers without paying their medical expenses.
The complaint names Tejeshwar Rana, proprietor of Infinity Engineering Solution, and contractor Prem Baral as responsible parties.
The victims’ families claim the company violated Section 55 of the Labour Act 2017, which requires employers to provide mandatory accident insurance for workers and cover treatment expenses in the event of workplace accidents.
They have demanded that the employer pay the full treatment costs of both workers, provide compensation as prescribed by law and take legal responsibility for the incidents.
The families also alleged that police refused to register a criminal complaint when they approached the authorities.
According to them, the contractor and company representatives had appeared at the police station in the presence of police and pledged to cover the medical expenses. However, they stopped responding afterwards.
The families said repeated visits to the police had not resulted in the registration of a formal complaint.
They further alleged that the company did not inform police about the accidents and that the workers were admitted to hospital using their personal details rather than the company’s name.
Labour office writes to local government
Following the joint complaint, the Labour and Employment Office in Teku sent a letter to the relevant local government on November 4.
The office requested Budhanilkantha Municipality to verify the address of the concerned establishment and assist in serving official notices.
It also requested that, if the establishment refused to receive the notice, it be posted at the premises in accordance with the rules, with proof and a formal report sent back to the office.
However, the process has yet to provide immediate relief to the injured workers.
According to their relatives, when they visited the company’s office, they found its signboard had been removed and the premises locked.
“We have filed a complaint at the labour office, and the process of posting a notice through the local government has begun. But we do not know how long it will take,” Lab Kumar said. “The hospital is demanding payment every day.”
The families say repeated accidents of the same nature at the construction site point to a failure to improve workplace safety. They also accuse the employer of avoiding responsibility for the treatment and compensation of injured workers.
The incidents have raised questions about who is responsible for ensuring workers’ safety at construction sites and how medical expenses and compensation should be guaranteed when workplace accidents occur.
Subcontractor says main contractor has gone out of contact
Prem Baral, who had taken the work as a subcontractor from the main contractor, said the situation had become difficult because the main contractor had stopped responding.
Baral accused construction entrepreneur Tejeshwar Rana and his engineering partner of taking on restaurant and building construction projects at various locations, including Kalanki, Annapurna Hostel, Godawari and Shankhamul, but failing to pay subcontractors and workers.
Baral said he had completed his assigned work around April 28–29 but was still owed Rs 1.2 million. He alleged that Rana had cut off communication and even blacklisted his phone number.
Baral also claimed that Rana had previously appeared at a police office with a lawyer after the victims’ families put pressure on him. However, during discussions, Rana allegedly pretended to be speaking on the phone and fled through the police station’s gate.
His lawyer subsequently agreed to discuss payment of the medical expenses and outstanding dues. But the meeting did not take place as scheduled, with the lawyer reportedly citing a trip to Biratnagar.
The parties later attempted to resolve the matter through a legal firm in Kalikasthan, but no concrete progress was made.
Attempts to contact Rana for his response to the allegations were unsuccessful.
