Telangana plant explosion: Nine people are still missing, expert committee to visit site
Sangareddy (PTI): As many as nine people are still missing in the explosion at the Sigachi Industries' pharma plant in Pashamylaram that claimed at least 38 lives and left 35 injured, and efforts are on to trace them, Superintendent of Police (SP) of this district, Paritosh Pankaj, said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the expert committee appointed by the state government to ascertain the causes and establish the sequence of events that led to the explosion is expected to visit the site on Thursday.
The panel should submit a detailed report with specific suggestions and recommendations, within a month, to the government.
The committee will be headed by Dr B Venkateswar Rao, Emeritus Scientist, at CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology.
A senior official of the district said some injured who are undergoing treatment in various hospitals are likely to be discharged today.
"Death toll remains at 38. Nine people are missing. But maybe today or tomorrow, once we get the reports of bones and other things from FSL (Forensic Science Lab), then things will be clear," SP Pankaj told PTI.
He said 90 percent of the debris removal was over and is not anticipating any bodies to surface further.
He, however, said some human remains may surface, and as and when they come up, they will be sent for examination.
Amit Raj Sinha, Managing Director & CEO of Sigachi, on Wednesday denied the allegations that the firm had used old machinery. He said the facility was old, but not the machinery.
Sinha, ruling out a reactor explosion at the plant, opined that a dust explosion in the dryer section could have caused the havoc.
Sigahci announced a solatium of Rs 1 crore each to the kin of the deceased.
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Anbumani asks PM Modi to ban sale of cigarettes for those born after 2009
Chennai (PTI): PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss on Saturday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take legislative measures to prohibit smoking and the sale of cigarettes to individuals born on or after January 1, 2009, thereby creating a smoke-free generation.
Anbumani, former Union minister for health and family welfare, said, "Once implemented, it (ban on cigarettes) will ensure that future generations are legally prevented from ever accessing tobacco products", he said in a letter to Modi.
"I write to you with a deep sense of urgency and responsibility, drawing your kind attention to a critical public health issue that continues to endanger the lives of millions of Indians, particularly among the younger generation who are affected by cigarette smoking", he claimed.
Stating that India unfortunately bears a disproportionately high burden of tobacco-related morbidity and mortality, he said, adding that, according to global health estimates, nearly 267 million Indians, approximately one in five citizens, use tobacco.
"Each year, tobacco consumption directly accounts for over 1.35 million deaths, while exposure to second-hand smoke contributes to a total of approximately 2.3 million deaths annually", he said, adding, "these figures are alarming and reflect a public health crisis of immense magnitude".
He pointed out that Scientific evidence unequivocally establishes tobacco use as a leading cause of cancer and numerous non-communicable diseases, including cardiovascular ailments, chronic respiratory diseases such as COPD, and multiple forms of malignancies. "In India alone, tobacco is responsible for nearly 40–50 per cent of all cancer cases, with over 4.7 lakh deaths annually attributed to tobacco-induced cancers", he added.
"In this context, I strongly urge the Union government to consider enacting a transformative law similar to that of the United Kingdom, that permanently prohibits the sale and consumption of tobacco products for individuals born on or after a specified year (such as 2009). Such a generational ban would mark a decisive step towards eliminating tobacco use in India over time", he said.
