Telangana Blast Toll Rises to 37, FIR Lodged

The toll from the explosion that ripped through a pharmaceutical plant in the Sangareddy district of Telangana rose to 37 by Tuesday evening, even as operations to rescue at least 20 more people continued for the second consecutive day.

- Srinivasa Rao Apparasu

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Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, who visited the site early on Tuesday, sought a detailed report on the accident, while the district police registered an FIR against the management of the pharma plant.

According to Sangareddy district officials, 143 people were present at the unit at 9.20 a.m., when a powerful explosion took place, triggering a blaze and caving in a three-story building. Of these 143, 58 managed to escape, while rescue operations are on to find 20 more. Most of the deceased were from Odisha, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana, they said.

A senior official involved in the rescue operations said 37 bodies have been recovered from the rubble so far, while another 35 are undergoing treatment. "At least 20 more employees who had reported for duty remain unaccounted for. Neither the authorities nor the families have been able to trace them so far," the official said.

The chief minister, who visited the site and met the injured workers at a local hospital at Patancheru, said those severely injured will receive ₹10 lakh, while those who are injured but can resume work after some recovery will be provided ₹25 lakh. "The state government is also ready to bear the entire cost of medical care for the injured. The officials have also been ordered to provide admission to the children of the victims in government residential schools," he told reporters.

He added: "The state government will talk to the company management to ensure that each ₹1 crore compensation is paid to the deceased families. I have issued orders that from both the government side and company side ₹1 crore compensation will be paid."