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Fujairah: A labourer who lost a thumb in a work-related accident has taken legal action against his employers for failing to follow safety procedures and neglecting their duties towards him.
Krishna Raj, 33, from Nepal, suffered a serious injury to his right hand February 16 while off-loading a container at Khor Fakkan.
The accident occurred at what labourers told Gulf News was a faulty, 30-year-old crane, which was also involved in another accident last year.
On Thursday, the judge presiding over the case decided the court will make a field visit to the site of the incident to examine the faulty crane.
Speaking through an interpreter, Krishna told Gulf News he endured three hours of agony before he was finally taken to hospital but without the accident being reported to the police.
Krishna had to be hospitalised for three days after losing his thumb. During that time, he says, no one from his company, Gulftainer, visited or contacted him, including the safety officer.
On February 26, Krishna says he received a "final warning" letter from the company, which manages and operates container terminals at the ports of Khor Fakkan and Sharjah.
The letter was dated February 16, the date of the accident, and in it, the terminal manager accused Krishna of causing the accident by "disobeying safety instructions".
Krishna disputes this, claiming the accident happened because he followed the instructions of an inexperienced supervisor and accuses the company of whitewashing the accident report to escape responsibility.
Krishna filed a police complaint against the company accusing them of neglecting their responsibility towards him.
Gulftainer refused to comment on the allegations against it.
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