Arun Singh was 38. The other victims were 32-year-old Sandeep Paleram and Chand, who was 42. All lived in the Indra Jheel area of Sultanpuri and knew one another. Investigators said they collapsed within minutes, apparently after inhaling poisonous gas while attempting the cleaning work and trying to rescue each other.
The Delhi Fire Service received a call at 12:03 p.m. reporting that three people were trapped. Traffic delayed the first fire vehicle, and another crew arrived around 12:40 to 12:45. Firefighters initially could not enter the tank safely; a responder later descended using breathing protection and ropes, secured the bodies and raised them from sewage water.
Police arrested factory owner Suraj Marwah, 50, employee Jayant Singh and contractor Neeraj, 35. Officers said Neeraj had brought the three men to the factory. An initial case cited India's prohibition on manual scavenging, provisions protecting Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and causing death through negligence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Charges remained allegations for the courts to assess.
Workers at the factory said the contractor had been asked to use tools to remove waste but sent the men inside. Family members alleged that the job began as water pumping before the workers were made to handle solid material. The manager declined substantive comment, and these accounts had not yet been tested in court.
The deaths exposed the practical gap between a legal ban and workplace conduct. Confined tanks can accumulate gases that incapacitate a person almost immediately, making an unprotected rescue attempt likely to create additional victims. Safe work requires atmospheric testing, ventilation, protective equipment, trained supervision and a retrieval plan that does not depend on another worker climbing in.
Each man supported relatives. Arun earned about ₹11,000 per month and helped care for two households. Sandeep left parents, a wife, a brother and a 10-year-old daughter. Chand had turned to manual labour after business losses and supported dependants including an eight-month-old child.
Police barricaded exits after senior personnel left the site. The investigation would need to determine who ordered entry, what risk assessment existed and whether legally required equipment and contractors were used.
The immediate sequence was already stark: one worker entered a hazardous space, others followed, and none had the tools needed to survive or perform a rescue. The arrests shifted attention from an unavoidable accident toward possible failures of duty and enforcement.
