Kolkata: A family disagreement turned into a life-saving decision for 35-year-old metal casting worker Dharmendra Chowdhury of Jagaddal in North 24-Parganas, who narrowly escaped becoming a victim of the Taratala warehouse roof collapse after deciding not to take up a week-long assignment at the site.Chowdhury had initially agreed to work at the under-construction warehouse, where a contractor had offered him Rs 7,000 for seven days, along with food and accommodation. But after discussing the offer at home, his wife opposed the plan and his five-year-old daughter pleaded with him not to go.“I was supposed to attend the job at Taratala on Tuesday, a day before the tragedy. Though I initially ignored my wife’s concerns, I could not refuse my five-year-old daughter’s request and stayed back at Jagaddal. I earn my livelihood as a metal casting worker, mostly taking up local assignments in the Sodepur-Khardaha area,” Chowdhury said.On Friday, after learning that two of his colleagues from Jagaddal had died in the collapse, Chowdhury went to the SSKM Hospital and broke down while waiting to receive their bodies.“I have been working as a casting worker for the last 15 years. My wife first asked me not to take up work outside Sodepur, but I had still decided to go. When my daughter desperately pleaded with me, I could not ignore her tears and finally declined the job. Today, some of my colleagues who went there are dead, while others are battling for their lives in hospital. Their loss is haunting me. Those responsible for such a massive tragedy must be punished,” he said.Chowdhury believes there were serious flaws in the welding and structural work at the site and alleged negligence by the contractor. “My daughter is my lucky charm,” he said through tears.
