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The blast in a pharma company in Anakapalli, Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday extinguished the light of many homes. Some lost their husbands, some their sons and some their fathers in this blast. Many injured are still fighting between life and death in hospitals. The horror of the accident can be gauged from the fact that the sound of this blast was heard for several kilometers. People of the nearby villages were frightened by the sound of the blast. It is not yet clear how this blast happened. The fire has been extinguished. Police and fire brigade teams are engaged in investigation.
Essentia Advanced Science Private Limited Company is located in Achyutapuram of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) of Anakapalli. This is a pharma company, which is spread over 40 acres of area of this Special Economic Zone. The company has different units in 40 acres, in which thousands of employees work. It was Wednesday afternoon. The employees who came on duty in the first shift were preparing to leave after lunch, while the employees of the second shift had come to work.
300 employees trapped in the company’s unit
Around 300 employees work in this pharma unit of Essentia Company. Around 2:30 pm, the employees working in both the shifts had gathered in the unit, when suddenly there was an explosion near the reactor of the unit. The explosion was so strong that the employees started screaming. Soon the entire unit was filled with smoke and 300 employees got trapped in it. Hearing the screams of these people, people working in the nearby units reached the spot and informed the police about the accident.
Andhra Reactor Explosion
11 tankers of the fire brigade extinguished the fire
On receiving the information about the accident, the police team first reached with one or two fire tankers, but when they saw that the situation was terrible, 9 more fire tankers had to be called. With the help of a total of 11 tankers, the fire brigade team started the rescue operation. Since the pharma unit of the company which caught fire was five to six floors high, the fire brigade team faced a lot of difficulties in extinguishing the fire at height. The fire brigade team proceeded by extinguishing the fire on one floor at a time and started evacuating the employees.
NDRF had to be called for rescue operation
As soon as the information about the accident was received, the SP and Collector of Anakapalli district also reached the spot and took updates of the rescue operation every moment. Meanwhile, the collector also called NDRF for help for the rescue operation. When NDRF reached the spot, the evacuation of the trapped employees gained more speed. By the time the rescue operation was completed, 18 employees had lost their lives in this horrific accident, while more than 40 were severely burnt.
CM Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the accident
The injured were admitted to nearby hospitals with the help of ambulances. The condition of many of them is still critical. Many employees were safely evacuated by the NDRF team. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the accident. He assured that his government stands with the families of those who lost their lives in the accident. The collector of Anakapalli district said that 13 people trapped in the pharma company’s unit have been rescued. Many employees somehow managed to save their lives and came out on their own after the accident. So far 18 employees have been reported dead. The number of injured has increased.
Andhra Reactor Blast
Investment of Rs 200 crore in Special Economic Zone
Andhra Pradesh Home Minister Anita took information about the accident in the pharma company. Talked to the District Collector over the phone. She expressed grief over the accident. Also directed to provide better treatment to the victims. Essentia Advanced Science Private Limited started its unit here in April 2019 with an investment of Rs 200 crore. It is located on a 40-acre campus in the Achyutapuram cluster of the Multi-Product Special Economic Zone (SEZ) of Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC).
An accident also happened in 2023
Let us tell you that in the month of July also, there was an explosion in a cement factory in NTR district of Andhra Pradesh, in which 16 employees were injured. In the year 2023, seven people were burnt in an explosion at Sahiti Pharma Company located in Achyutapuram of the same Anakapalli district. Now another tragic accident happened in Essentia Advanced Science Private Limited Company. 18 people lost their lives in this accident, while more than 40 are injured.
208 pharma companies-1 fire engine… Tragic accidents have happened in Andhra’s Anakapalli before
There are not one or two but 208 pharma companies in Anakapalli Achyutapuram in Andhra Pradesh where the accident happened. Despite this, there is only one fire engine here. The biggest thing is that many tragic accidents have happened here before. Last year, 4 people died in a blast in a pharma company. Now after this accident, questions are being raised once again.
The blast in the pharma company took place on Tuesday when the employees returned after lunch time. It is being told that there were about 300 employees in the factory at the time of the blast. Out of these, 60 employees were caught in the blast. So far 18 of them have died, while 36 are seriously injured. They have been admitted to a private hospital nearby.
SEZ is of 10 thousand acres, pharma companies are in 3 thousand acres
The area where the blast took place in Anakapalli district comes under the Special Economic Zone i.e. SEZ. This area is of 10 thousand acres, out of which 3 thousand acres are reserved for pharma companies. It is called Achyutapuram Pharma SEZ. There are about 208 pharma companies here, in which chemicals are stored. Therefore, accidents keep happening here every day.
One fire engine, fire tenders are called from nearby in case of fire
Despite there being 208 pharma companies in Anakapalli Special Economic Zone, there is only one fire engine here. According to a report by BBC Telugu, the workers there claim that there is only one fire engine here. Whenever any untoward incident happens here, fire engines are called from the nearby area. Last year, four people died in Sahitya Solvent Company.
Tragic accidents in the last 10 years
- On June 30, 2023, there was an explosion in Sahitya Pharma Company, in which 4 people died.
- One person died here in an accident in the second week of June 2023.
- In February 2023, one person died due to an accident in Mithun Ferros Pharma.
- On October 22, 2022, there was a gas leak in Saint Globin Company. One person died in this accident.
- On July 23, 2021, an accident took place in Vashishtha Pharma in SEZ itself, in which one person died.
- On January 14, 2020, an employee died due to a fire in a chimney in Sanveera Limited Company.
- On April 8, 2019, one person died due to an accident in Asian Paints Company.
- On December 27, 2014, two people died due to a massive explosion in Mylan Company.
- In June 2022, more than 500 women employees fell ill due to a poisonous gas leak at a seed company.
