Addanki: Six migrant workers died and more than eight were injured when a massive granite slab fell on them in a quarry run by Sathya Sai Krishna Granites at Konidena village in Ballikurava mandal of Bapatla district on Sunday.

According to fellow workers and the Bapatla district police, heavy rain on Saturday night destabilised the heavy granite block which fell on a group of workers on duty at around 11:00 AM on Sunday. The boulder killed four workers on the spot and injured several people. Two of the severely wounded workers succumbed to injuries at a hospital, while eight more severely injured workers are undergoing treatment.

The police officials identified deceased workers as Danda Badithya (48) of Chasa Nimakhandi village, Banmala Chehra (30) of Phasiguda village, and Santosh Goud (36) of Kasai village in Ganjam district, Bhaskar Bhishoi (40) and Tukuna Dalai (37) of Chandiput village of Gajapati district, and Musa Jena (43) of Daugan village of Kandhamal district, all from Odisha. The severely injured were identified as A Sudarsan, Alak Naik, Sira Goud, S Venkaiah, Subhash Malik, Pavitr Behra, Santha Naik, and Dubey.

Bapatla SP Tushar Dudi visited the accident spot and coordinated the rescue efforts. He announced that the forensic and mining teams started their investigations, and a police case has been registered against the management of the quarry, following instructions from Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu.

The Bapatla District Collector, J Venkata Murali, consoled the injured workers at the hospital in Narasaraopet on Sunday evening. Accordingto him, 16 people were working at the time of the accident. The Collector announced an ex-gratia of Rs 14 lakh each to the kin of the deceased, Rs 10 lakh to the severely injured, and Rs 1 lakh to the workers who suffered minor injuries. He assured the injured workers that the government would bear the expenses of their medical treatment. The Collector also announced that action would be taken on the management of the quarry based on the report from the mining department.

Meanwhile, Governor S Abdul Nazeer, Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the tragedy.

"I spoke with officials, instructed them to provide the best possible medical treatment to the injured, and ordered a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the accident," said Naidu in a release.

YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy expressed sorrow over the incident. “This is truly heart-wrenching.

These workers lost their lives while toiling for their families,” said Reddy in a statement. He urged the government to ensure medical care for those injured in the accident and to provide immediate support and assistance to the families of the deceased.

Addanki MLA and Energy Minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar, Labour and Factories Minister Vasamsetty Suresh, and others also expressed their shock over the incident.