UP factory blast: FIR against unit owner, operator; death toll rises to 13

An FIR has been registered against the owner and the operator of a factory in Hapur where at least 13 workers were killed and 20 injured in an explosion, police said on Sunday.

The incident took place at Ruhi Industries in the Dhaulana area on Saturday.

"So far, 13 people have been killed, while 20 are injured. The injured are undergoing treatment in various hospitals in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad and Meerut," Superintendent of Police Deepak Bhuker said.

He added that 11 out of the 13 deceased have been identified and they are from Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh) and Bihar.

Inspector General of Police Praveen Kumar said the factory was licensed to manufacture only electronic goods, and an investigation is underway to ascertain how explosives reached there.

Police said they suspect that crackers were being manufactured in the factory.

According to Superintendent of Police Deepak Bhuker, factory owner Dilshad and operator Wasim have been booked under IPC sections 286 (negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance), 287 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery), 304 (culpable homicide), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 337 (act endangering human lives) and 338 (causing grievous hurt).

Three teams have been constituted to arrest the accused, he said.

The victims' bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination, the SP said.

District Magistrate Medha Roopam said an investigation is underway. "Factories in the area are being checked, and soon, the reality of the incident will come to the fore and strict action will be taken against the accused," she said.

At the time of the incident, there were around 30 people at the factory in the UPSIDC Industrial Area in Dholana, around 80 km from the national capital, officials said.

The impact of the explosion was so intense that the roofs of some of the factories located in the vicinity were damaged. It took three hours for fire tenders to douse the blaze.

President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the loss of lives.