A regular workday at a stone quarry in Odisha's Dhenkanal district turned deadly for two after a large chunk of rock fell. The incident took place on Saturday evening when some workers were engaged in drilling and exploration of stone at a quarry located near Gopalpur village in the district, the officials said.
The exact cause of the incident remains unclear, the officials said. The initial investigation has found that the stone quarry did not have blasting permission.
"We will take legal action against the mine lease holder as blasting and mining continued at the quarry after expiry of the lease period," Dhenkanal Collector Ashish Ishwar Patil said.
The blasting permission for the stone quarry expired in September, while its lease period ended in December 2025, Patil added.
Local fire service teams, Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) team, a dog squad, and machines are engaged in rescue operations, a fire service officer said.
"Rescue operations are underway," a fire department official said.
Dhenkanal Collector Ashish Ishwar Patil and Superintendent of Police Abhinav Sonkar are overseeing the rescue operation.
"As per available information, only two persons were there, and two bodies were recovered. One person belonged to the Balasore district, while another was from either the Keonjhar or the Mayurbhanj district. Their identities have not yet been established," Patil told, as reported by the news agency PTI.
Naveen Patnaik, former Chief Minister of Odisha, expressed shock and grief.
"I am deeply saddened to learn that workers lost their lives due to a rockfall following an explosion in a stone quarry in Dhenkanal," he wrote in a post on X.
"At this sorrowful time, I convey my deepest condolences to the family members, along with prayers for the eternal peace of the departed souls. Let appropriate investigations be conducted into the circumstances under which this incident occurred and the state of the workers' safety measures, and let the government direct its attention toward immediately expediting rescue operations," he added.
(With inputs from Dev Kumar Ghosh)
