When 50-year-old Venugopal Govindswamy Nadiar , working at a site at Gokuldham, went into a 30-feet deep pipe and didn't come out despite their repeated shouts, worried co-workers informed the fire brigade.

Firemen rushed to the spot and fished Nadiar out. He was rushed to Bhagwati Hospital, where he was declared dead before admission. The body was then sent for post mortem. The report is awaited.

However, another worker at the site, E Ravi, lodged a complaint at Dindoshi police station alleging that Nadiar's death was due to negligence by the contractor, M O Eapan and the foreman, Yeli Keshavan.

The complaint said neither of the two told the workers about the depth of the hole nor did they take any precaution, like tying a rope around the worker's waist to break his fall.

Following this, police registered a caseof negligence against the two under sections 304 (a) and 114 of the Indian Penal Code. Investigations are in progress, police said.

Nadiar was involved, along with 30 other workers, in cleaning the sewerage lines and laying new pipes at Gokuldham, according to police sources.