Boiler blast in Jalna steel factory: One of 22 injured workers dies in hospital

Jalna, Aug 25 (PTI) One of the 22 workers injured in a boiler blast in a steel factory in Jalna in Maharashtra succumbed to burn wounds at a private hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Sunday, an official said.

The blast took place in Gaj Kesari Steel Factory in Jalna’s MIDC area on Saturday afternoon, leaving 22 workers injured, including seven critically, after molten iron fell on them.

They were rushed to a private hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where Ramesh Bhaturam, who suffered 98 per cent burns, died this morning, the official said.

After visiting the site on Sunday, Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Ambadas Danve said strict action must be taken against the factory management.

“I visited the factory and found that safety aspects were missing. I have also heard such mishaps take place frequently. The administration must look into this seriously,” said Danve, who was accompanied by the company’s director Ram Agarwal, Jalna Steel Association president Ghanshyam Goyal as well as his Shiv Sena (UBT) colleagues Bhaskar Ambekar and Anirudh Khotkar.

On Saturday night, the Chandan Jira police had booked the company’s manager Dilip Jha, furnace in-charge Sudhakar Roy and crane driver Ashok Prajapati in connection with the incident based on a complaint by injured worker Mohammed Rafiquddin, the official said.

Jalna Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Kale, in a statement, said the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health must take immediate action to ensure workers in such units are safe.