Death toll in Bengal fire-cracker factory blast rises to 5, Mamata announces compensation

Kolkata, May 16

The death toll in the explosion at an 'illegal' fire-cracker factory at Egra in East Midnapore district on Tuesday has risen to five.

Seven other critically injured persons are currently undergoing treatment at a local hospital.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has announced a compensation of Rs 2.5 lakh each for the deceased persons families, and Rs 1 lakh for those injured in the blast, besides ordering a probe into the matter by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal Police.

Banerjee also said that if the National Investigation Agency (NIA) probes the matter, as demanded by state BJP President Sukanta Majumdar, she will not object to it.

Speaking to the mediapersons here, the Chief Minister said that the owner of the fire-cracker factory, Krishnapada Bag, was arrested by the police in October last year.

"He was arrested for running an illegal fire-cracker factory. The police even issued a charge sheet against him. But the court granted him bail. After that he resumed operations at his illegal fire-cracker factory located close to the Bengal-Odisha border," she said.

Bag is absconding since the blast at his factory and the police suspect that he might have escaped to Odisha.

The Chief Minister also said that Bag runs similar illegal fire-cracker manufacturing business in Odisha and Bangladesh.

Banerjee further alleged that Trinamool Congress leaders were stopped by the local BJP cadres from reaching the spot of the explosion.

"The panchayat under which the blast took place is under the control of the BJP," the Chief Minister said.

Meanwhile, Sukanta Majumdar has claimed that the impact of the explosion shows that it was not an explosion of ordinary fire-crackers.

"We suspect that crude bombs were being manufactured at the factory," he said.

The local people have alleged that the fire-cracker factory was being run illegally without requisite permission or monitoring of the local administration, including the police.

They have also alleged that their repeated appeals for taking action against the illegal fire-cracker factories mushrooming in the area were ignored by the local administration.