Cracker unit blast: Rs 1L solatium to victims’ kin

Replying to DMK MLA Thangam Thennarasu in the State Assembly, he said, Rs 50,000 each would be given to those who sustained serious injuries and Rs 25,000 to those who sustained minor injuries.

He said he had also directed the Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar district Collectors to provide the best of treatment to the injured.

When Thennarasu said the accident took place because the owners of the cracker unit manufactured high-end cracker, though permission was given to the company only to manufacture ordinary crackers, Palaniswami said that action would be taken if they were found to have manufactured without proper permission.

Meanwhile, the death toll in the cracker unit explosion has risen to nine.

While eight persons, including seven women, who worked in the unit, were killed and eight others injured after the explosion on Friday, one more victim’s body was found charred and mutilated on Saturday morning.

The deceased victim has been identified as Gurusamy (45) of Mukkutumalai village, Kovilpatti. The injured were admitted to Kovilpatti Government Headquarters Hospital, sources said.

Virudhunagar District Fire Officer K Ganesan said after clearing the debris on the accident spot, the charred body parts were recovered on Saturday at some 300 metres away from the spot.

Among those injured, four of them suffered about 60 per cent burns and 20 per cent burns to the rest of the victims, Ganesan said.

Elayirampannai police have booked a case against eight including Ganesan (50), of Vellayapuram, proprietor of the cracker unit and six various Sections of IPC. Three persons have been interrogated, Inspector of Police Sundarapandiyan said. It was a licensed unit, but excess workforce was deployed when the explosion occurred, the Inspector said.