Fire and rescue personnel during a rescue operation at the site of an explosion at the Sigachi Industries' pharma plant in Sangareddy district on Tuesday. (PTI)
Sangareddy: The death toll reached 45, a day after the deadly chemical explosion at Sangareddy’s Sigachi Industries’ pharma plant in Pashamylaram.
On Tuesday, July 1, chief minister A Revanth Reddy, accompanied by ministers Sridhar Babu, Damodara Raja Narasimha, G Vivek and P Srinivasa Reddy, visited the factory blast site and reviewed the situation with senior officials.
He announced an ex gratia of Rs 1 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured as aid. He clarified that the amount is not compensation. “We will ensure that the families of those who died in the explosion receive a compensation of Rs 1 crore from the Sigachi Pharma company,” the CM added.
Also, the state government will pay Rs 1 lakh each to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured to meet any immediate and emergency expenses.
He also ordered authorities to conduct a thorough inspection at all chemical units to prevent future mishaps. A special officer has been appointed to oversee rescue operations.
As many as 35 people are undergoing treatment in different hospitals. The condition of 10 of them is said to be critical.
“Several bodies have been found under the debris while removing it. As many as 31 bodies have been extricated, and three died while undergoing treatment. The last leg of the rescue operation is still going on,” district superintendent of police Paritosh Pankaj told PTI.
As a probe begins to investigate what could be Telangana’s worst industrial disaster in recent times, officials believe a temperature buildup in the spray dryer could be the reason for the explosion.
A spray dryer turns a liquid or slurry into a dried powder by atomising it into a hot gas stream. Temperatures can soar as high as 800 degrees Celsius during the process.
To maintain the sharp rise, a bow air handler is used to regulate airflow and temperature. This requires regular cleaning of the system. Experts suspect that a lack of proper cleaning may have resulted in high temperatures in the spray dryer, triggering the explosion.
Sigachi Industries Limited is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to pioneering advancements in Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Intermediates, Excipients, vitamin-mineral blends, and Operations and Management (O&M) services, according to the company’s website.
The factory had 189 employees, with a majority hailing from other states. About 145 workers were reportedly present on the premises on Monday morning when the blast occurred.
CM Revanth gave a dressing down to the management of Sigachi Industries Ltd and sought a comprehensive report on the incident, including details of past similar occurrences and preventive measures taken.
A company official informed the chief minister that the Founder and Executive Chairman of Sigachi was present on June 30. “A major accident has taken place. He (senior management) has to come. He has to visit the deceased person’s family. You can not avoid the situation. He has to come. Ask him to come,” he fumed.
State IT minister Sridhar Babu Sridhar Badu said the company has to act on a humanitarian basis. “Sorry to say that your top management is not here even after 24 hours. If he is so preoccupied, why does he have to run a factory? Such a major, fatal incident has taken place. And our government will take it very seriously,” Sridhar Babu said.
He also mentioned that the Director of Factories has provided some sort of indications to the company (on safety issues).
The Sigachi official replied that all the medical expenses of the victims would be borne by the firm.
(With inputs from agencies)
This post was last modified on July 1, 2025 6:29 pm