Pimpri-Chinchwad police have arrested Harsha Kadam, chief executive officer and managing director of Schaeffler India, months after two workers died and three others fell ill following a carbon dioxide leak at the company’s plant in the Talegaon MIDC industrial cluster in Pune.
Kadam, 60, is the eighth person arrested in connection with the case, police said. Senior Inspector Vijayanand Patil of the Talegaon MIDC police station confirmed that Kadam was arrested on Tuesday.
The incident took place on June 9 at the premises of Schaeffler India Ltd, according to officials. Staff from Usha Fire Safety Equipment Pvt Ltd, Fernotech Engineers Pvt Ltd and personnel from Schaeffler India were carrying out maintenance work on fire safety cylinders when the leak occurred.
Two workers died of asphyxia after the carbon dioxide release, while three others fell ill, according to the details reported by The Indian Express. The incident brought the operations of multiple companies and contractors within the industrial cluster into the same police investigation.
The arrest places the head of the company among those detained in a case involving a fatal workplace incident during fire-safety maintenance. The available police account does not provide details of the specific allegations against Kadam, the sections applied in the case, or the circumstances leading to his arrest.
The case also highlights the operational risks involved when industrial safety systems are serviced on active premises. The work at the Talegaon plant involved fire safety cylinders and personnel from two outside companies along with Schaeffler India staff. Establishing responsibility in such incidents typically requires investigators to examine the maintenance process, the handling of the cylinders, workplace access and the coordination between the principal company and contractors. Police have not disclosed further findings in the material available.
Talegaon MIDC is an industrial cluster where manufacturing units, specialist contractors and maintenance service providers operate within a shared industrial environment. An incident at one facility can therefore involve employees of several companies, making the division of safety responsibilities an important part of the investigation.
With Kadam’s arrest, eight people have now been arrested in the case. The police investigation remains the formal process through which the circumstances of the June 9 leak and the responsibilities of the people involved will be determined.
