Firecracker accidents killed 380 in Virudhunagar in 14 years, shows data

CHENNAI: With the recent killing of six workers at a firecracker manufacturing unit near Sattur in Virudhunagar on January 4, the number of lives lost in such incidents after 2011 rose to 380 in the particular district alone.

As many as 327 others are living examples of the government’s failure to prevent these accidents, as they now endure permanent disabilities, including the 21-year-old worker who was maimed in the January 4 incident.

The number of such accidents over the last 14 years illustrates that there has been no decline in the frequency of accidents and fatalities. In fact, these numbers are increasing each year, posing a serious threat to the lives and livelihood of workers and exposing the failure of the authorities to prevent such accidents.

Data from 2011 onwards shows 217 fatal accidents in firecracker units in Virudhunagar district alone. “These accidents reflect the officials and government mechanism’s inefficiency. The government machinery has also failed to provide alternative employment opportunities,” said activist S Karuppiah of the Dalit Liberation Movement.

A closer look at the data reveals that 144 have been killed in firecracker industry accidents in the last four years, that too in Virudhunagar district alone. Sources point out that most of these tragic accidents had taken place in smaller units with a higher number of workers, where safety protocols and precautions are often disregarded.

It has become a ritual for the authorities to conduct district-wide inspections following each accident, but there are no follow-up actions, point out people who work in the sector. They point out that government machinery fails to act beforehand by conducting regular or surprise inspections of cracker manufacturing units. However, the authorities often shrug off their responsibility by stating that worker negligence is the cause of most of these accidents, people working in the firecracker sector lament. “Who is responsible for streamlining the sector and enforcing laws to prevent the loss of lives? They only appear after an accident, spend the next 10 days conducting inspections, and then disappear. This is the routine of officials after every such incident,” said P Selvananatham of Madusuramkudi, whose mother Jaya was one of the 27 workers killed in an accident in Achankulam in February 2021.

The government has amended the inspection scheme for fireworks factories to increase the frequency of inspections. Officials from the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health, along with representatives from the revenue, police, and fire and rescue services, form the squads tasked with conducting surprise inspections. “The government is introducing new ideas and regulations to prevent fatal accidents, but they remain just on paper,” said a source within the department, who wished to remain anonymous.

Information emerging from the department also laid credibility to the workers’ claims that officials are not adequately inspecting the licensed buildings used for manufacturing fireworks. “The rules permit two to four people to work in a 10x10 sq ft room in a licensed building. However, the facility owner often leases it for Rs 2 to Rs 3 lakh per annum to subcontractors, who, in turn, employ six to seven people in the same room using beyond permissible amounts of chemicals to manufacture more crackers in a short period to cover their expenses and make a profit. It results in accidents and claiming the lives of the poor,” Selvanatham said.

Repeated attempts to reach Labour Minister CV Ganesan for comments ended in vain.