Fatal fall from height at ONGC WD-51 Workover Oil Well Mine, Gujarat

भारत सरकार श्रम एंव रोजगार मंत्रालय खान सुरक्षा महाननदेशालय SAFETY ALERT: 09/2025 Dhanbad, dated: 20.08.2025 SUBJECT: Fatal accident occurred due to fall of person from a height of about 20m at WD-51, Workover Oil Well Mine of M/s ONGC Ltd in Kotha village, Gandhinagar district, Gujarat.

1. Name of Mine :

WD-51, Workover Oil Well Mine

2. Name of Owner :

Shri Pankaj Kumar, Director (operation), M/s ONGC Ltd.

District :

Gandhinagar State :

Gujarat

3. Mineral :

Oil & Gas

4. Date and time of accident :

28.03.2025 and 10:31 Hours

5. Place of accident :

Oil Well, Workover rig, Above ground.

6. Killed :

Name: Dinesh Dudi Designation: Topman (Contractual Worker)

Age: 32 Experience: 03 years in workover Operation.

7. Seriously Injured :

Nil

8. Brief Cause : While a Topman was climbing up on the ladder from derrick floor of a workover rig to reach the monkey board, he suddenly slipped and fell down on ground from a height of about 20m, inflicting serious bodily injuries to him, which proved fatal.

9. Sketch showing the accident:

10.

Best Practices :

1. Mandatory use of full-body safety harness with double lanyards attached to a secure lifeline or fall arrestor system while climbing and working at height.

2. Avoid simultaneous rig operations and ladder climbing to prevent distractions or movement.

3. Ensure the derrick ladder is securely fixed, free from oil, mud, or grease, and fitted with non-slip rungs.

4. Provide properly designed and guarded monkey board with anchorage points for harness attachment.

5. To eensure complete cleaning of oil spillages on the derrick floor and mast ladder before operations.

*Safety Alert, a tool utilized by DGMS, informs the mining industry about potential safety issues and offers recommendations to prevent such incident.

Directorate General of Mines Safety: 123 years in the service of the nation