Two migrant workers from Bengal’s Jalpaiguri district were among at least 17 persons who were crushed to death when a girder-launching crane collapsed in Maharashtra’s Thane on Monday night.

The incident has triggered the BJP and Trinamul to trade charges on the issue of jobs in Bengal.

A girder launcher — a special-purpose mobile gantry crane used to build bridges and install girders in highway projects — collapsed while work was under way on the Samruddhi Expressway near Shahapur in Thane late on Monday. The expressway aims to connect Mumbai with Nagpur.

Deceased Ganesh Roy, 43, and Pradip Roy, 34, were both from Dhupguri block in Jalpaiguri. Ganesh was from Paschim Daukimari while Pradip was from Uttar Kathulia.

“Ganesh left home around six months back to work at a construction firm in Maharashtra. On Tuesday morning, we got a phone call from Mumbai saying he died in the accident. He was the sole earning member of the family,” said Manesh, the deceased’s uncle, adding that Ganesh left behind his elderly mother, wife and three minor children.

Local sources added that Ganesh had taken a loan from a private financial company for some pressing need and had gone to Maharashtra to earn money and repay the loan. Pradip, on the other hand, is survived by his mother, wife and two minor children. He went to Maharashtra four-five months back, said Swapan, his cousin.

“We have not yet informed his family. This morning, we got the shocking news over the phone. He was the sole bread earner,” he said.

The Maharashtra state government announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the families of each of the deceased. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has expressed his condolences over the accident, has also announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation for each of the bereaved families.

The deaths of the two Bengal workers have led to ripples in political circles.

District Trinamul leaders alleged that because the Centre froze MGNREGS funds in Bengal, many among the rural population are being forced to move out to other states in search of work.

Mahua Gope, the Jalpaiguri district Trinamul president, said: “These people were dependent on the (Centre’s) 100 days’ work scheme (MGNREGS) and would run their families with earnings from this and other assistance provided by the state government. But after the central government stopped providing funds (to implement the MGNREGS in Bengal), people have no option but to migrate to other states to earn their living. The BJP cannot evade the responsibility (for these two deaths of Jalpaiguri workers in the Thane crane crash).”

Gope added that the Mamata Banerjee government in Bengal is doing a lot to make the lives of migrant workers easier. It has constituted a development board for migrant workers. A helpline has been opened and a portal is being made to reach out to such workers during crises.

The state has also announced compensation between Rs 50,000 and Rs 2 lakh for migrant workers’ families in case a worker becomes physically challenged or dies. Added to it, the state has announced a transport cost of Rs 25,000 if the family intends to bring the worker’s mortal remains to his native place, along with another Rs 3,000 for the last rites.

It is believed that around 38 lakh people from Bengal work in other states. In Jalpaiguri district alone, around 60,000 people work in other states.

Those in the saffron camp, however, have said that over the past decade, migration from Bengal to other states in search of jobs has increased.

“Work under the 100 days’ scheme has not been available in Bengal for only a couple of years, and that too because of the corruption and irregularities carried out by Trinamul’s elected representatives in the panchayats. The key reason for migration, however, is that the state government has failed to create adequate job opportunities for the youths in Bengal,” said Bapi Goswami, the BJP’s Jalpaiguri district president.