MP: If a borewell accident happens now, the land owner will be in trouble! new rule implemented

Indore: More than 16 thousand people have lost their lives in borewell accidents in the last decade across the country. Madhya Pradesh is also not untouched in the cases of deaths due to borewells. This is the reason why now the Madhya Pradesh government has enacted the Prevention and Safety Act-2024 law to curb accidents caused by humans falling into borewells.

This law has become operational in the entire state. Under this Act, there is a provision to take punitive action against the concerned agency as well as the land owner in case of any accident if proper safety measures are not taken by the drilling agency at the time of drilling the borewell.

If any accident occurs at the time of drilling for a borewell or tube well or after that, an FIR will be registered against the concerned agency and the land owner. If the drilling agency and the land owner fail to comply with the instructions of safety measures, then a fine of up to Rs 10,000 may have to be paid for the first offense and up to Rs 25,000 for each subsequent offense.

On the other hand, in case of accident or death, if found guilty, the person will be punished as per the provisions of Sections 100, 105, 106 and 110 of the Indian Code of Criminal Procedure 2023. The expenses incurred for the rescue of a person during the accident will be recovered from the drilling agency or the land owner.

An appeal can be made against any order passed under this Act within a period of 30 days. The drilling agency will have to take permission to drill by filling the data on the prescribed web portal before drilling a borewell or tube well. The drilling agency will have to provide complete information about the drilling site and the land owner.

Safety measures will have to be ensured during drilling and after its completion. Inactive borewells (tube wells) will have to be closed by the land owner within 3 months. If the land owner or drilling agency does not cap the borewell as per the instructions of the competent authority, a fine will be levied. This amount will be given as a reward to the complainant. In case of open borewells, the competent officer will be able to take cognizance on receiving a report or complaint either by himself or through any other person. If the complaint is found to be correct, the complainant will be rewarded.