Blast in Amritsar cracker factory, workers escape unhurt
The blast that took place around 9am was so powerful that it ripped apart some walls of the factory
An explosion triggered by fire took place in a cracker factory at Ibban Kalan village in the Amritsar district on Saturday morning.
Three-four labourers present in the factory at the time of the incident escaped unhurt. The blast that took place around 9am was so powerful that it ripped apart some walls of the factory.
The fire broke out in the unit due to short circuit, police said. It took nearly two hours for four fire tenders to douse the flames.
Police officials said their preliminary investigation suggested that the factory was legal as its owner Tarwinder Singh has the licence to run it.
“Four of our fire tenders reached the spot within 15 minutes of getting information. The fire was doused by 11am,” said fire officer Lovepreet Singh.
Chatiwind police station in-charge Kashmir Singh said, “As per the statements of the labourers, the fire broke out due to a short circuit that took place while switching on a tubewell motor. Though factory owner Tarwinder Singh of East Mohan Nagar in Amritsar has produced the licence , we are registering a case of negligence against him.”
Sub-divisional magistrate (Amritsar-2 SDM) Shiv Raj Singh Ball said, “We will investigate the records of the factory. It will also be probed whether the factory owner was following proper guidelines while running the unit.”