Ahmedabad: At least four persons were killed and several others injured in a blast and fire at an illegal firecracker factory in Ramol area of Gujarat’s Ahmedabad city on Saturday, a police official said, adding the toll is likely to rise due to the critical condition of some of those hospitalised.
The explosion and the resultant fire took place at 3:30 pm at the factory situated on Ramol-Gatrad road, the official said.
“Four people have died in the incident and several others have been hospitalised with injuries. The toll may rise due to the critical condition of some of the injured persons,” the official said.
The unit, set up on an open farm, was operating without a valid licence, Joint Commissioner of Police Jaipal Singh Rathore said.
Personnel from Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services rushed to the spot and launched rescue and relief operations.
The official said a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other offences will be registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Explosives Act provisions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives in the incident and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured.
“Extremely saddened to hear about the loss of lives due to a mishap at a fireworks factory in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. My thoughts are with the bereaved families in this hour of grief. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured. The local administration is providing all possible assistance to those affected,” Modi said in a post on X.
The prime minister said an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund would be given to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured in the incident.
Meanwhile, a 28-year-old worker plunged to his death after a lift cable snapped while he was loading material at an under-construction building of a hospital in Ahmedabad, police said on Saturday.
The incident occurred around 9 am on Friday at the under-construction building of LG Hospital, an official said.
The worker, Shyam Gordhan Mali (28), a native of Karauli district in Rajasthan, was loading construction material into the lift on the ninth floor of the building when the cable snapped, inspector YJ Rathod said.
Preliminary inquiry suggests that a fault in the lift’s control panel caused the cable to snap, plunging the lift to the ground with the worker inside, he said.
Mali had been working at the LG Hospital building for the last two years, police said.
He was rushed to the hospital’s emergency ward, where doctors declared him dead, they said.
A case of accidental death has been registered under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and a probe is underway.
