At least 23 people were killed and 27 others sustained injuries after a massive explosion at a firecrackers manufacturing factory in Batala in the Gurdaspur district in the north Indian state of Punjab on Wednesday.
The National Disaster Response Force teams, police and a dozen fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze and rescue people trapped inside the factory, many of whom remain in a critical condition.
Businessman P Goel who owns a factory near the site of the incident told SBS Punjabi that the impact of the blast was so strong that it was heard from nearly a kilometre away, shattered windows of houses and a shopping mall in the vicinity and sent vehicles flying into the adjoining riverbed.
“It was around 4 pm when we heard a powerful blast, sounded like a bomb had exploded. It rattled our window panes and when we rushed out to the main road towards the site, the scene was horrific, to say the least.
“There was smoke, vehicles lying in the nullah, nearby school and buildings had suffered severe damage, and the stink was unbearable. I didn’t have the heart to go to the factory site, but workers from our mill who were friends with labourers at the cracker factory told us that nothing was left of the manufacturing unit, neither the building nor most of the people,” said Mr Goel.
Explosion at a cracker factory in Punjab’s Gurdaspur claims 23 lives. Source: Supplied
“This was an unauthorised factory which should have been shut down years ago. Many times the association of factory owners around the cracker factory had raised concerns about the dangers it posed but nobody paid heed. I hope they do now,” said the worker who wishes to remain anonymous.
He claimed that the factory was manufacturing crackers round the clock ahead of the ensuing festive season.
"They were operating even at night because of Guru Nanak Dev's marriage anniversary celebrations to be held today, of course, Diwali, which is just a month away," he added.
This is, however, not the first time that firecrackers have caused damage in the densely populated town. A similar blast had occurred two years ago that ripped apart several shops in the area, and claimed a person's life and left at least three injured.
Magisterial inquiry ordered:
Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident and has directed both the civil and police administration of the densely populated town to oversee the rescue and relief operations.
Newly-elected Gurdaspur Member Parliament and actor, Sunny Deol also condoled loss of lives in the explosion.
Meanwhile, former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal has demanded strict action against officials guilty of breaching safety measures and sought immediate enforcement of the directions of India’s Supreme Court on all firecracker factories in the state to avoid any untoward incident in the future.
