Two contract workers died reportedly after inhaling carbon monoxide that leaked at the coke oven unit of SAIL’s IISCO Steel Plant in West Burdwan’s Burnpur on Wednesday.

Sources at the central public sector unit said the gas had leaked after a glitch at battery 11. Three workers were doing cleaning jobs at the battery chamber shut for maintenance around 3.30pm when the incident occurred.

“All three had breathing problems and were rushed to the plant hospital with oxygen. Doctors declared two workers dead on arrival. The third was released after treatment,” said an IISCO official.

Deceased workers Suman Biswas, 38, and Babun Sarkar, 43, stayed in Burnpur. The bodies were sent for autopsy.

The survivor, Shyamapada De, 35, had managed to escape from the chamber a little earlier, an IISCO source said.

Relatives of the deceased and other workers reached the hospital to demand compensation.

Trade union leaders blamed steel plant authorities.

“Workers don’t get minimum protection and forced to work in life-threatening situations. We demand permanent jobs for the kin of the deceased,” said Harjit Singh, general secretary of INTUC-affiliated Asansol Iron and Steel Workers’ Union.

The agitation was withdrawn after IISCO agreed to give jobs to a relative of both victims.

Singh later confirmed that the IISCO management had promised to provide compensation, including a job to one family member of each of the deceased workers.

The steel plant, which is now running with less than half the regular manpower in each shift following the ongoing restrictions put in place by the state government because of Covid-19, has around 4,750 permanent employees, including executives and around 8,000 contractor workers.

IISCO authorities have ordered a probe into the incident. However, they said the incident did not affect production at the plant.