Host of violations across the board at MP factory

Irregularities such as storage of explosives well above the permitted limit and absence of proper water tanks were detected at the factory that caught fire in Harda on Tuesday, leaving 11 people dead and over 200 injured, in an inspection conducted by the district administration in September 2023, documents accessed by HT showed on Wednesday.

- Shruti Tomar

No corrective action was taken in the interim period. The copy of the inspection report at the factory in Bairagarh area of Narmadapuram district owned by Rajesh Aggarwal and Somesh Aggarwal, who were arrested on Wednesday, said that the factory flouted several norms under of the Explosives Act, 2008 and operations should be stopped immediately to prevent any loss of life.

"No documentary evidence has been presented during the investigation regarding the approved map/drawing of the firecracker manufacturing complex. During investigation, it was found that the firecrackers manufactured were kept in the warehouse rooms for drying, which is not in accordance with Specification 3 of the Explosives Act, 2008," the report said.