Toll in 'illegal' Punjab fireworks factory blast rises to 24

Additional Deputy Commissioner Tajinderpal Singh Sandhu on Monday initiated the inquiry into the case.

NDRF personnel carry out rescue works at the site of blast in the fireworks factory at Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab. (Photo| PTI)

BATALA: The toll in the Batala firecracker factory blast has risen to 24 with one of the grievously injured succumbing to his injuries at the Amritsar government hospital, police said on Monday.

The deceased was identified as Sammulen Masih, aka Vicky, a resident of Ramdas village in Amritsar.

He worked at the firecracker factor, DSP Bal Krishan Singla said. Six others injured in the blast are still undergoing treatment at the Amritsar hospital.

READ| Punjab blast was second in two years at 'illegal' firecracker factory

Twenty-three people were killed and several injured in the blast on September 4. The Punjab government had ordered a magisterial probe into the incident.

Additional Deputy Commissioner Tajinderpal Singh Sandhu on Monday initiated the inquiry into the case.