“Though there is no official record of the number of registered workers in the factory, my team has estimated that at least 600-700 workers used to work there. 12 deaths have been reported while at least 224 are injured. Where are the rest of the workers?” asked Congress MLA from Harda, Ram Kishore Dogne.
A massive explosion in a firecracker factory on 6 February has rattled the locals in Harda.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), the fire was caused due to "illegal possession of an excessive quantity of explosives" at Rajesh Fireworks. The factory owners – Rajesh Agrawal alias Raju, Somesh Agrawal – as well as a factory supervisor namely Rafiq – were arrested the same day.
A case was registered against the accused at Civil Lines police station in Harda district under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to culpable homicide), 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and Section 3 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.
Meanwhile, locals living in the vicinity of the firecracker factory, claimed that the explosions were calamitous.
“I live three kilometres away from the factory. When the explosion happened, the windows of my house broke open. Those who had glass panes, their windows completely shattered. We thought it was a plane crash,” Priyanka Dubey, an advocate from Harda, told The Quint.
'Owners Held Many Times More Explosives Than Prescribed'
Congress MLA Dogne told The Quint that the factory owners had two licenses – both allegedly invalid – to store 15 kg of explosives. “Yet it is being reported that they kept 15 quintals of explosive materials, nearly 100 times the quantity,” Dogne claimed.
The Quint hasn't been able to verify this figure independently. However, an inspection by the district administration in 2023 had reportedly revealed that the factory was storing explosives well above the prescribed limit.
The MLA added that this is the third such incident in the last seven years and that the factory had been sealed in 2020 for violating safety norms.
“The high court had awarded Rajesh Agrawal a jail term for 10 years. He was out on bail... There is a possibility that they were storing TNT or Trinitrotoluene, which is purportedly available only for military use,” Dogne claimed in the Assembly.
According to a report in Hindustan Times, the factory was inspected by then Collector Rishi Garg in September 2022 and he recommended sealing of the factory and cancellation of the license under the Explosives Act. However, his recommendation was overturned by the then divisional commissioner Mal Singh on October 14, 2022, the newspaper reported.
Harda Collector Aditya Singh told The Quint, "The investigation is ongoing and we can comment on the matter only after it is over. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the matter. Several forensic teams have also been deployed. My request is to please not create panic."
MLA, Activist Raise Questions Over Death Toll
Dogne told The Quint that the explosions on 6 February led to debris from all the three floors of the firecracker factory caving into the basement.
“We suspect at least 100-200 workers could be trapped under. A few people have complaint to me that their relatives and friends are missing,” Dogne said. He demanded that all the debris be dug out from the basement and cleared from the site.
Meanwhile, activist Anand Jat, who runs a coaching centre for UPSC aspirants in Harda, alleged that at least 1300 workers were registered with the factory and twice as many were working there on contractual basis.
Dubey also claimed that a significant chunk of workers at the factory were not locals and had come from nearby Betul, Khandawa and Khargone districts, while many were migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
"These migrant workers were living in temporary shelters on the factory premises. It was common knowledge that they stored explosives in their makeshift homes too. After the fire, there is no trace of them at all," she alleged.
'Leaving No Stone Unturned in Rescue Efforts:' Harda Collector
Dogne also claimed in the state Assembly on 8 February that the administrative officials have only cleared the debris on the land. He accused them of being hand-in-glove with the SP and Collector of Harda "under whose purview the factory was operating unofficially."
A day after the incident, Harda SP Kanchan was transferred to Bhopal as Assistant Inspector General while Harda Collector Rishi Garg has been transferred to Deputy Secretary in the Madhya Pradesh government.
Harda's current Collector Aditya Singh told The Quint on 11 February, that 13 people have died so far, of which two could not be identified, 185 people have been injured. On being asked about allegations of more workers trapped under debris and the death toll going up, Singh said, "The rescue and rehabilitation is going on, and until then, one should not be spreading rumours."
He added that the administration is leaving "no stone unturned" to rehabilitate the people who have been rescued from the site of the explosion.
Action Demanded Against Officials
Dogne claimed that the effect of the blast was felt in a 3-km-radius around the factory and many passersby were critically injured. He added that the factory owners have four more factories in – in Rahta Khurd, Pipalpani and Kunjargaon (all in Harda district) and one in Khandwa district – and that more “firecrackers were drying off” nearly two kilometres away from the Harda factory.
Locals that The Quint spoke to said that there were two petrol pumps and a school in a one-kilometre-radius from the firecracker factory. While the tin shed over the petrol pump flew off as soon as the explosion occurred, there was no damage caused, they said.
“I demand a proper probe into how the factory was operational even after it had been sealed in 2020. This is the third such incident in this factory. Though SP Sanjeev Kanchan and Collector Rishi Garg have been transferred, it is not enough. An FIR should be filed against the duo and other officers who facilitated the illegal operation of this illegal factory.”Raj Kishore Dogne, Harda MLA
Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, who visited the victims at a local hospital in Harda, on 7 February that his government will "take such stern action (against those responsible) that people will remember."
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