Kanpur: The death of a 22-year-old smart meter technician after he allegedly suffered an electric shock while reconnecting an electricity connection sparked protests by his family and fellow employees at the postmortem house on Friday. Alleging that company officials forced him to perform work outside his assigned duties, the family demanded action against those responsible and Rs 20 lakh in compensation.The deceased, Anshuman Sharma, was a technician with Genus, a company associated with KESCO. According to his family, he had gone to install a smart meter at a house in the Chhote Miyan Hata area on Thursday. They alleged that after completing the installation, company officials pressured him to reconnect the electricity connection, though it was not part of his job.The family claimed Anshuman suffered a severe electric shock after coming into contact with a cut underground cable while reconnecting the supply. People nearby rescued him with the help of a stick and rushed him to a hospital, where he died during treatment.On Friday, family members and fellow employees staged a protest at the postmortem house, alleging that Anshuman had been forced to do work beyond his responsibilities. They also accused Colonelganj police of misbehaviour and alleged that officers threatened to register a kidnapping case against the employees for allegedly holding company officials hostage.Following nearly two hours of talks at Swaroop Nagar police station, the company provided immediate financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the family and assured them of help in obtaining government assistance. However, the family remained firm on its demand for action against the officials concerned and compensation of Rs 20 lakh.
