Man’s family were given shocking compensation when he was buried alive by construction workers
Latori Barman was a 45-year-old man who worked as a farm labourer in Madhya Pradesh, India. One night in September 2015, something terribly sad and shocking happened to him. That evening, he went to a village fair with his wife. After some time, she decided to go to her parents’ house, but Latori stayed behind. On his way home, he stopped to drink alcohol. He had a few drinks, and while walking back home alone, he didn’t see a deep pothole in the middle of the dark road and accidentally fell into it.
It was very late at night and there were no streetlights. The road was completely dark, and the pothole had no signs or barriers to warn people. Latori was drunk and didn’t notice the big hole. He fell in and most likely passed out inside the pit. A few hours later, a group of construction workers came to fix that part of the road. Sadly, they didn’t check the pothole properly and didn’t see that someone had fallen into it.
Without realizing there was a person inside, they started their work. They poured hot tar, gravel, and other materials into the hole. Then they used a heavy roller to press it down and level the road. By doing that, they buried Latori alive without even knowing. He died inside the pothole from not being able to breathe. His body was trapped under the road.
The next morning, when he didn’t come home, his wife became very worried. She went to ask neighbours for help, and they all began searching for him. As they looked around, someone noticed what looked like an arm sticking out of the freshly repaired road. They called the police, and when officials came to investigate, they discovered that Latori’s body was under the road. It was a heartbreaking moment.
When the truth came out, it shocked the entire community. The police arrested the construction workers involved. Some of them were charged with negligence, which means they didn’t do their job properly and caused someone’s death. Later, they were also charged with a more serious crime called culpable homicide, meaning they were responsible for someone dying due to their careless actions.
People were angry not just about how Latori died, but also about how little his family was given after the tragedy. The government gave them only 50,000 rupees, which is around £430. That small amount of money made people feel like Latori’s life didn’t matter to those in power. His wife lost her husband in the most shocking way, and all she got was a tiny amount of compensation.
Years later, a YouTuber named Zack D Films made a video showing what happened. He recreated the whole story to raise awareness. Many people watched the video and were horrified. Some said they couldn’t believe something like this actually happened. One person commented that they had just woken up and already felt traumatised. Others were upset that the workers didn’t even notice a full-grown man inside the pothole. One person called it “disturbingly inhuman.”
This sad story made people realise how dangerous poor road conditions and careless behaviour can be. If someone had just checked the hole properly, Latori might still be alive. Instead, a mistake cost a man his life, left a woman without her husband, and shocked the entire country. It’s a reminder that even small things—like leaving a hole uncovered or not paying attention at work—can lead to terrible consequences.
