BHUBANESWAR: At least 13 people were injured in an explosion at the blast furnace of KJS Ahluwalia Sponge Iron Plant located in Odisha's Keonjhar district on Friday morning.
Soon, the injured were taken to TISCO Hospital at Joda. Four of them, who had sustained severe burn injuries, were later shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. Two of them are said to be a critical condition.
The labourers were working near the blast furnace premises at around 8.30 am when the incident happened. They were injured by the molten metals strewn from the furnace.
Soon after the mishap, workers gathered in front of the premises and raised a banner of protest, following which, the plant was shut down. Police reached the spot to defuse tensions.
The KJS Ahluwalia Sponge Iron Plant is located on the border between Keonjhar and Sundargarh districts and comes under Rugudi Police Station limits.
This is not the first mishap in KJS Ahluwalia plant. Seven months back, another accident was reported from the sponge iron unit.
Police will examine if industrial safety precautions were followed at the plant.