Seven people were burnt alive after a blaze broke out at an illegal firecracker-manufacturing unit operating inside a garment factory in Rajasthan’s Khairthal-Tijara district on Monday, officials said.
The incident took place in the Khushkhera-Karoli industrial area of Bhiwadi town.
"Seven persons have died in the incident. It was a garment factory but firecrackers were being manufactured inside it illegally," Sumitra Pareek, Additional District Magistrate, said. She added that two people were trapped in the factory.
"The premises was leased out in the name of a garment factory but as per the preliminary report, firecrackers were being manufactured illegally," she said.
According to officials, police learnt about the blaze during a routine patrol and immediately launched a rescue operation.
District Collector Artika Shukla and other senior district administration and police officials rushed to the spot, with Shukla ordering an inquiry into the incident.
Preliminary findings indicate that more than 20 people were inside the factory at the time of the fire. While several workers managed to escape as flames engulfed the premises, nine were trapped. Seven of them were burnt alive. Firefighters brought the blaze under control after more than one-and-a-half hours. Some skeletons were also recovered from the site.
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma directed district authorities to undertake relief and rescue measures without delay and instructed Forest Minister Sanjay Sharma to proceed to Alwar.
Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra termed the incident unfortunate and called for a thorough investigation.
Former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully also expressed condolences over the death of seven labourers.
The ruling Trinamool in Bengal questioned whether the BJP government in Rajasthan will be called out for accountability as it had happened in Bengal, where a fire in a storage facility in the eastern suburbs of Calcutta claimed several lives.
“Will there be the same breathless calls for accountability? Will there be demands for Narendra Modi to rush to the site? Will the BJP leadership flood social media with grief-soaked indignation? Or does empathy activate only when there are electoral dividends to harvest?” the Trinamool asked in a post on X.
After the tragedy at Anandapur, which occurred during the wee hours of January 26, chief minister Mamata Banerjee was criticised for not visiting the site.
The CM even issued a statement on the floor of the Assembly during the just-concluded budget session.
“Where are the self-appointed guardians of morality now? Where are the “keyboard warriors” who flood timelines at the speed of tragedy when it suits their narrative? Rajasthan is governed by BJP. So the outrage meter drops to zero,” the Trinamool said.
