Drug factory gutted,3 dead

Chemical reactions which went out of control caused explosions in a drug factory,Magma Industries Ltd,in Muzaffarnagar district on Friday,resulting in a major fire which claimed the lives of three labourers.

Chemical reactions which went out of control caused explosions in a drug factory,Magma Industries Ltd,in Muzaffarnagar district on Friday,resulting in a major fire which claimed the lives of three labourers.

According to the police,by the time the fire tenders reached the spot,three labourers Hamid (25),Naimuddin (35) and Manoj had died. Eight other labourers and two fire service employees suffered serious burn injuries and are undergoing treatment. The condition of three of the labourers was stated to be critical. Irked over the incident,a mob of locals ransacked the factory and damaged the property before the police used force to disperse them.

Muzaffarnagar SSP Praveen Kumar said a case had been registered under the Explosive Substances Act at Mansoorpur police station against the owner and the manager of the factory for causing death due to negligence. The factory manufactures generic drugs for a leading Indian multinational pharmaceutical giant. The SSP said primary investigation showed that labourers were engaged in the job of mixing chemicals in absence of any technical expert when three consecutive explosions rocked the factory.

Soon,flames enveloped other sections of the factory,he said. The Pollution Control Board,drug inspector and the factory inspector would also be filing complaints in the court against certain violations by the factory,the SSP said.

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