Four workers die of suffocation in Ujjain hotel’s waste chamber; CM announces help

A victim was brought to a hospital after four people died allegedly due to suffocation while cleaning a waste chamber at Hotel Shri Ganga on Ujjain-Dewas Road, in Ujjain district, Madhya Pradesh, on November 1, 2026. | Photo credit: PTI

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

According to officials, the incident occurred around 10.30 pm on Saturday (October 31, 2026) when two laborers entered an overhead chamber containing leftovers and leftover food at Hotel Shri Ganga on the Ujjain-Dewas road and collapsed. Two other workers then entered the chamber in an attempt to save them, resulting in the death of all four.

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

Slippery sludge in the chamber and a gas leak are believed to have caused the incident, although investigations are ongoing and hotel management and staff are being questioned. Mr. Sharma added that the bodies were recovered after police personnel and hotel staff breached the chamber during which some people, including policemen, sustained minor injuries.

“There was an iron grate on the chamber, so some people got injured during the rescue work. The police also tried to revive them with CPR, but we failed,” he said.

The deceased have been identified as Wahid Khan, 29, Nitin Binarwan, 28, Kamlesh Tamboli, 30, all local residents, and hotel manager 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 investigating the case. Meanwhile, an official of the Ujjain Municipal Corporation’s health department said the hotel had not received the mandatory cleanliness certificate from the civic body.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav condoled the death and announced a financial assistance of ₹ 4 lakh to each family of the deceased. “The news of the tragic death of four people in a chamber cleaning accident at a private hotel in Ujjain is deeply painful. My sincere condolences to the bereaved families. I have directed the state government to provide financial assistance of Rs 4,000 each to the families of the deceased,” he said on X.

Published – 01 Nov 2026 14:52 IST