Serious Lapses Caused Sigachi Fire, Telangana Tells High Court
In his submission to the High Court, Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao said that the findings were the outcome of investigations by multiple departments.
Hyderabad:The government has identified serious lapses in safety protocols, regulatory compliance, and emergency preparedness, which led to the devastating explosion at Sigachi Industries Ltd at Sultanpur in Patancheru mandal on June 30, which left 46 dead and eight missing.
In his submission to the High Court, Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao said that the findings were the outcome of investigations by multiple departments. The court, while dealing a PIL on the blast, had directed the government to file an affidavit with the details of action and relief measures that it had taken.
The government said blast resulted in the collapse of the main production block and caused significant damage to adjacent structures as there was no sufficient space between the buildings in the factory. This, the CS said, resulted in higher casualties.
He informed the High Court that the government had constituted a high-level committee to investigate the incident, fix accountability, and recommend systemic improvements to prevent future tragedies.
According to the Chief Secretary, preliminary investigations by the department of factories indicated that the explosion originated in the manufacturing block. Officials opined that the likely causes of the explosives, included static electricity generation, dust concentration, and possible equipment malfunction. The blast led to a partial collapse of the building, trapping employees under debris and resulting in several deaths.
The Chief Secretary also informed the court about the constraints experienced in fire fighting and rescue operations due to open spaces not provided sufficiently in the premises.
According to the fire department, the details of staircases (MoE) provided in the building were not available, which is considered a drawback for access in rescue operations.
Fire-fighting equipment was not provided sufficiently in the premises and the building has collapsed due to the blast and during the fire and rescue operations, the debris of the building and pharmaceutical which contain chemicals and drugs (like Micro Crystalline Cellulose (MCC) powder created an obstacle to retrieve the dead bodies.
According to the home department, the investigation was going on over the working methodology and more specifically the condition of the spray dryer prior to the incident. In this regard, the police have issued notices seeking details from the manufacturer, ACMEFIL Engineering Systems Pvt. Ltd, Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
On the eight missing persons, the district collector wrote to the government seeking further orders on the issuance of death certificates in respect of the eight missing persons, and a response from the government is awaited.
