Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said the firecracker unit in Patharpratima, South 24-Parganas, where Monday’s explosion claimed eight lives, was a licenced facility.

Her assertion stirred controversy, as the manufacturers’ association virtually echoed the Opposition in rubbishing her claim.

The manufacturer’s association, Sara Bangla Atasbaji Unnayan Samiti, said Mamata had been fed with wrong information. The Opposition claimed she was trying to legalise the illegal.

Speaking at a news meet in Nabanna, Mamata tried underscoring the difference between Bengal and the BJP-ruled Gujarat’s Banaskantha, where at least 21 died in
Tuesday’s explosion at a firecracker unit.

“The unit where 25 persons were killed was not a licence-holder,” she alleged, referring to the Gujarat tragedy. On the firecracker unit in Patharpratima, she said: “The unit where a blast occurred here had a licence.... He (the owner) is a licence-holder.”

Apparently indicating that persons involved in handling risky items like firecrackers should be responsible, she said: “It is your duty to take care of your home. I don’t cook at home. But it is the duty of those who do this job to take care of the (cooking) gas cylinder. This incident taught us a big lesson.”

“Firecrackers and gas cylinders should not be kept together to avoid the danger,” she said.

“I feel very sad that a family has lost everyone.... We should learn a lesson from this. That we should all be careful. Because human life is the most precious thing...,” Mamata said.

Her claim that the Patharpratima-based firecracker unit, owned by Chandrakanta Banik, had a valid manufacturing licence was dismissed by Sara Bangla Atasbaji Unnayan Samiti chairperson Babla Roy.

Roy said: “It is unfortunate that the chief minister was fed with wrong information. The unit owner had once appealed for a manufacturing licence but that was not granted since the unit and its location did not have the required infrastructure under standard operating protocols. The owner has only a selling licence, that too most probably not meant for the house where the blast occurred.”

“I don’t understand how the chief minister shared such wrong information. The facility is located in a densely populated area with no motorable road and no access to a fire brigade. It can never have a valid licence,” he added.

“It appears that our chief minister has been deliberately trying to legalise an illegal thing, apparently giving illegal firecracker units a free hand to continue. She even did not bother to say a word to the police for negligence, rather advised people to be careful,” said a local BJP leader.

Left leader Kanti Ganguly visited the blast site and demanded a probe by an impartial agency supervised by the high court. The former minister also demanded that the state government take responsibility of the affected family. “The police and the administration knew everything. An investigation by the district police would be futile. I heard that the owner of this factory was arrested once before. How was he still doing business?” Ganguly asked

Accused owner Chandrakanta Banik, arrested on Tuesday night, was produced before a court in Kakdwip on Wednesday and put in police custody.

Diamond Harbour police carried out raids across different areas and seized firecrackers and explosives. Four persons were arrested.