Five workers were feared dead after water from the Mahi river flooded a hydropower plant near Lunawada in Gujarat’s Mahisagar district on Thursday (September 4) afternoon, the police said on Friday (September 5, 2025).
A multi-agency rescue operation is underway. The incident occurred around 3 p.m. at the Dolatpura plant, district Superintendent of Police Safin Hasan told The Hindu.
He said that 15 workers were on maintenance duty inside a large well in the plant when water was suddenly released from the upstream Kadana dam. The water rushed into the well, trapping the workers. “It’s almost 60ft deep, and water is still leaking into it. So pumping out is also not helping,” Mr. Hasan said.
“Personnel from the National Disaster Response Force, SDRF as well as fire brigade personnel from Vadodara and Mahisagar were engaged in the rescue operation… We have also engaged local swimmers from Lunawada,” he said.
According to Mr. Hasan, water from the Mahi river entered the plant premises on Thursday afternoon, and even after 24 hours, there was no sign of the five missing workers despite a multi-agency rescue operation launched immediately.
“With the discharge from the Kadana dam upstream, water suddenly rushed into the well while the workers were inside carrying out maintenance. Ten of them managed to escape, but five were swept away,” he said.
Rescue teams began operations soon after the incident, but the missing workers have not been traced yet, Mr. Hasan said. “We have brought in an underwater search vehicle from Vadodara as the tank is deep and visibility is extremely poor due to the presence of oil and grease in the water,” he added.
Published – September 05, 2025 08:33 pm IST
