Four workers die of suffocation in Ujjain hotel waste chamber; CM announces aid

Four workers died after entering a waste chamber for cleaning at a private hotel in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, with officials suspecting suffocation caused by a poisonous gas leak.

According to officials, the incident took place around 10.30 p.m. on Saturday (October 31, 2026) when two workers entered an overground chamber containing residual and leftover food at Shri Ganga Hotel on the Ujjain-Dewas road and collapsed. Two other workers then entered the chamber in an attempt to rescue them, resulting in the death of all four.

Ujjain Superintendent of Police Pradeep Sharma told The Hindu that all four workers had entered the tank without the required protective gear, adding that three had been hired externally for the cleaning work while one was a hotel staff. He said the bodies have been sent for post-mortem examinations and that an FIR will be registered based on the findings.

The incident is suspected to have been caused by slippery sludge in the chamber and a gas leak, though investigations are ongoing and the hotel management and staff are being questioned. Mr. Sharma added that the bodies were recovered after police personnel and hotel staff broke open the chamber, during which some people, including police officers, sustained minor injuries.

“There was an iron grill on the chamber so some people suffered injuries during the rescue efforts. Police also tried to revive them through CPR but we could not succeed,” he said. 

The deceased have been identified as Wahid Khan, 29, Nitin Binarwan, 28, Kamlesh Tamboli, 30, all local residents, and the hotel supervisor Manoj Meena, 25, a resident of Rajasthan’s Jhalawar. 

Probe

Ujjain Collector Roshan Kumar Singh told The Hindu that the Ujjain Police and the Ujjain Municipal Corporation are probing the case. Meanwhile, an Ujjain Municipal Corporation health department official said that the hotel had not gotten a mandatory receipt from the civic body for the cleaning.   

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav condoled the deaths and announced financial assistance of ₹4 lakh to each to family of the deceased.  “News of the tragic death of four people in an accident while cleaning a chamber at a private hotel in Ujjain is deeply painful. My condolences to the bereaved families. I have directed the state government to provide financial assistance of Rs4 lakh each to the families of the deceased,” he said on X.