On Saturday, a massive firecracker mishap at Balaji Crackers shop charred 14 workers to death whereas three sustained burn accidents.

Ramesh Gowda, who runs a store close to Balaji Crackers, stored his outlet shut Sunday. Gowda stated, “It was about 3.30 pm (Saturday) and some of the workers were unloading crackers from a truck. I heard a loud noise and saw that the truck had caught fire. While some workers started to run, it was too late for others to escape as the fire spread to the shop in no time. The crackers continued to burst for the next 20-30 minutes.”

Workers who have been unloading the crackers managed to flee however folks working contained in the store couldn’t, Gowda added.

Incidentally, the sale of crackers is a serious supply of earnings close to the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border. Ahead of Deepavali yearly, lots of of cracker retailers sprout alongside the freeway on an almost 20 km stretch ranging from Hosur.

Ramesh, one other eyewitness, stated, “Selling crackers is big business, especially before Deepavali. The traders buy crackers from Sivakasi (a town in Tamil Nadu that houses the maximum number of cracker factories in India) in bulk and bring them here. They engage workers to repack the crackers in gift boxes… It is a time when one can make quick money. Sometimes, workers earn up to Rs 1,000 every day and the traders provide them with meals and accommodation as well.”

While the federal government has made it obligatory for merchants to acquire a short lived license to promote crackers and comply with hearth security norms together with storing water and holding the supply of emergency exit doorways at retailers, such guidelines are not often applied, stated locals.

Murugan, a neighborhood dealer, stated, “There is a huge profit margin in the cracker business. If you buy a crore worth of crackers, you can make a profit of more than 100-150 per cent. These big traders who buy crackers worth crores from Sivakasi, pay bribes to the local police to turn a blind eye. Until now, they were never questioned or it was never a point of debate.”

Murugan stated different retailers within the neighborhood happily didn’t catch the hearth. There have been a few wine retailers subsequent to the cracker store, he added.

According to a police officer, Balaji Crackers proprietor Ramaswamy Reddy and his son had purchased crackers price Rs 5 crore from a manufacturing facility in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu to promote throughout Deepavali.

Bengaluru (Urban) DC Ok A Dayanand stated they’d permitted the store to promote crackers and to not retailer them in bulk. “The owner has violated the licence conditions and stored more than 1,000 kg of firecrackers. The licensing authority has not permitted anyone to store crackers. We will ensure that the rules are followed,” he stated.

When the Indian Express visited the gutted store, it discovered that the two,400 sq. ft store house had a cement roof, with no emergency exit however a small door that linked to the godown behind the store. In the godown, crackers have been saved which additionally caught hearth.

Reacting to the tragedy, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D Ok Shivakumar stated the federal government will type a brand new coverage and tips to stop such cracker mishaps. He stated, “We have instructed the police and district administrations to conduct a safety check of godowns and shops selling firecrackers.”