Panaji: Of the 138 industrial accidents reported at factories across the state between April 2022 and Aug this year, formal action was initiated against occupiers and managers in only nine cases, while just two resulted in convictions, despite the accidents collectively claiming at least 20 lives and injuring more than 130 workers, according to official data.In the majority of cases, 115 in total, were marked ‘closed’ without any legal proceedings recorded against factory management, including several that involved worker injuries. Legal action was pursued in cases involving fatalities or unsafe conditions linked to lapses in safety infrastructure, including the collapse of a chimney at Goa Sponge and Power Ltd due to cyclonic winds, three deaths at Zuari Agro Chemicals Ltd, and the five deaths and two injuries at Vijai Marine Services in Rasaim, Loutulim. The latter was the deadliest single incident during the four-year period.Other cases in which legal proceedings were initiated involved Himgiri Casting Pvt. Ltd., Berger Becker Coating Pvt. Ltd., Goa Steels Ltd. and Model Infra Corporation. Only the nine-worker injury case at Superindia (FRP) in Kundaim resulted in a court conviction of both the occupier and manager.Fifteen cases remain under active investigation and have not yet been assigned a ‘closed’ or “legal action” status. These involve companies such as Cipla Ltd., Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Commscope India Pvt. Ltd., Vedanta Iron & Steel Ltd., Parksons Packaging Ltd. and Syngenta Biosciences Pvt. Ltd. The cases appear at the end of the reporting list, suggesting they are among the most recent incidents in the four-year period and likely occurred closer to the report’s August 2026 cut-off. The exact dates were not specified in the available data.Of the 15 pending cases, 14 involved a single injury each, while the incident at Parksons Packaging Ltd. in Mapusa resulted in a death.
