Six workers killed in Muzaffarpur snacks factory fire, another feared dead

Muzaffarpur SDO Kundan Kumar Tuesday told The Indian Express that the search operation was on its last leg. “Relatives of only six workers have so far come forward to claim that their men are missing. Since some people have also referred to the likely presence of a seventh worker, we are running thorough search,” he said.

Local administration had recovered four charred bodies Monday, while two more were found Tuesday. (Express photo)

Sitamarhi resident Ishwari Paswan, who lost his nephew Amit in the fire, said that the 22-year-old had joined the factory through a contractor recently. Paswan, who has been assisting a 16-member State Disaster Response Force team to trace and identify the workers killed in the fire, said his fellow villager, Chandan Paswan, a worker of the factory, was also missing since the fire broke out.

While factory owner. Pappu Choudhary, was not available for comments, his nephew Vicky said: “Around 15 workers from outside had stayed at the factory and some of them were sleeping in a store room when the factory caught fire. While at least seven workers managed to flee, six to seven others were caught in the blaze.” He claimed that though fire tender had reached (the unit) within six hours, “it took them more than 12 hours to start rescue operation”.

Muzaffarpur’s District Information Centre general manager, Anil Kumar Sinha, confirmed that they had “checked the factory records and found that it was approved by State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB) and had licence”. Muzaffarpur police, however, said they would investigate laxity and negligence on part of factory management and also any government agency, including electricity department in the matter.

According to sources, though the unit had proper licence and fire safety equipment, it had no trained staffers to use it. (Express photo)

The unit was engaged in the production of eatbles like biscuits, chips and macroni since September 2017 and employed over 30 workers, mostly temporary workers from Sitamarhi, Sheohar and Motihari.

According to sources, though the unit had proper licence and fire safety equipment, it had no trained staffers to use it. Only one security guard and some workers were present on the factory premises during the time of incident, sources said. “Our top priority was the rescue operation. The matter would be investigated taking every aspect of safety into account,” DSP (East Muzaffarpur) Gaurav Pandey said. An FSL team has collected sample from the site.