PALANPUR/AHMEDABAD: Twenty-one people, 18 of them from Madhya Pradesh, lost their lives when a massive explosion triggered the collapse of an illegally operating firecracker godown in an industrial area of Deesa town in Banaskantha district on Tuesday.
Police said all victims were buried under the debris and had no time to escape due to the sudden and intense nature of the blast. Most of them also sustained burns as the explosion triggered a fire fuelled by the firecrackers.
The victims included at least four children.
The explosion was so powerful that body parts of some victims were found scattered in a farm 200-300 metres away from the site, said Banaskantha collector Mihir Patel. He added that the families of the deceased labourers were also living on the same premises.
The victims from MP came just two days ago to work in the godown.
Superintendent of police Akshayraj Makwana said the warehouse was operated by Khoobchand Thakkar and his son Deepak, both residents of Deesa. “The local crime branch has arrested Khoobchand and his son Deepak. We will invoke stringent charges against them for endangering lives. We will ensure a watertight chargesheet to secure maximum punishment for them,” Makwana said.
The accused were booked under BNS section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) in the FIR lodged at the Deesa police station. Sources said that the owners also started manufacturing firecrackers illegally.
State govt spokesman and health minister Rushikesh Patel said that a team from the SP’s office inspected the premises on March 12 but did not find any explosives at the time. “After the inspection, the owner secretly stored firecrackers and began manufacturing them, leading to the explosion and multiple deaths. The factory lacked even basic safety facilities, which is why its licence was not renewed. Both the district administration and Banaskantha police issued a negative opinion on the renewal,” Patel said.
One injured person who suffered 60-70% burns was shifted to Ahmedabad for further treatment while two are recuperating at the Palanpur Civil Hospital.
Chief minister Bhupendra Patel expressed grief at the deaths and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next kin of the dead.
CL Solanki, deputy superintendent of police (Deesa), told TOI that the police rejected the godown owner’s licence renewal application due to non-compliance with fire safety regulations. During inspection, the police found that the facility lacked proper ventilation.
A special investigation team headed by DySP Solanki has been formed to expeditiously investigate the case, Border Range IG Chirag Koradia said.
Meanwhile, teams from Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and technical experts have started a probe to determine the exact cause of the explosion. PM Narendra Modi, too, expressed grief and announced an ex gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh from the PM National Relief Fund to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured. “Deeply saddened by loss of lives in explosion at a firecracker factory in Banaskantha, Gujarat. Condolences to those who lost their loved ones. May the injured recover soon,” Modi wrote on X.
