VIRUDHUNAGAR: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo motu cognisance of the recent death of 25 people in an explosion at a private firecracker manufacturing unit in the Kattanarpatti area of the Virudhunagar district and issued notices on Thursday to the Chief Secretary, Tamil Nadu and the Superintendent of Police, Virudhunagar, calling for a detailed report on the matter within two weeks.
In a press note, the NHRC stated that the report should include the status of health of the injured victims, investigation of the case, and the compensation amount that has been paid to the deceased and the injured persons.
The explosion occurred on April 19 at a firecracker manufacturing unit in the Kattanarpatti area of Virudhunagar and claimed the lives of 25 people.
More than 100 workers, including women, were present at the factory complex at the time of the incident. The blast was allegedly triggered due to friction during the chemical mixing and manufacturing process.
It may be noted that there was a similar incident in the district recently where four workers had died.
The National Human Rights Commission has observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise serious issues of human rights violations of the victims. Therefore, it has issued notices to the chief secretary and the superintendent of police, Virudhunagar, calling for a detailed report within two weeks.