IT company employee dies of cardiac arrest in firm's office in Nagpur

At a time when the tragic death of 26-year-old Ernst & Young employee Anna Sebastian Perayil in Pune has ignited a debate on social media about the supposedly toxic work culture in India's corporate sector, another 40-year-old employee of a leading information technology company died of cardiac arrest in the washroom of the firm's office in Maharashtra's Nagpur, officials said on Sunday. The incident took place on Friday, they said.

The deceased has been identified as Nitin Edwin Michael, a senior analyst with HCL Technologies, according to police. At around 7.00 pm on Friday, 27 September, Michael was found unresponsive after he entered the washroom of the company's office in the city's Mihan area, an official from Sonegaon police station said.

His colleagues rushed him to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Nagpur, where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival, he said.

The Sonegaon police sent the body for post-mortem and registered a case of accidental death. Initial autopsy findings indicated that Michael died of cardiac arrest, the official said. The police are nonetheless conducting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

Michael is survived by his wife and a six-year-old son, according to police. While it is not clear whether his death was the result of work-related stress, the deaths of two serving employees within such a short time span, both involving leading corporate houses, seem to underscore the urgent need for companies to prioritise mental and physical health needs of employees, foster supportive work environments, and implement policies that can prevent such tragedies in future.

The conversation on social media reflects a growing awareness of these issues, pushing for change in corporate practices and cultures.

With PTI inputs