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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
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2 min read
At least 39 killed in fire at Indian pharmaceutical factory
Story by Reuters
Updated:
10:00 AM EDT, Tue July 1, 2025
Source: Reuters
The death toll from the explosion and fire at Sigachi Industries’
SIGC.NS chemical factory in southern India has risen to at least 39,
officials said on Tuesday, forcing the supplier of pharma products to
shut operations for 90 days.
The government of Telangana state, where the facility is located, has
formed a five-member committee to probe the incident, the cause of
which is yet to be disclosed by the company.
The explosion on also injured 34, according to officials.
“We are still clearing the debris,” GV Narayana Rao, director of
the Telangana fire disaster response service, told Reuters, adding that
the building had completely collapsed.
“Once we are all done with the clearing, only then we will be able to
assess if any other body is still remaining under the debris or if it
is all clear,” Rao said.
Police officials said more than 140 people were working in the plant
when the incident occurred. Twenty-five of the deceased were yet to be
identified, district administrative official P. Pravinya said.
“I came out (of the plant) to use the restroom and heard a loud
blast. It sounded like a bomb blast. I came out and saw fire. A part of
the fire also spread towards me. I jumped the wall and escaped,”
Chandan Gound, 32, who has been working at the factory for six months,
told Reuters by phone.
“Many of them (those inside) managed to escape, but a large number
were trapped and could not come out,” Gound added.
Sigachi, which makes microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), caters to
clients in the pharma, food, cosmetic and specialty chemicals sectors
in countries ranging from the US to Australia.
MCC’s compressibility, binding properties, and ability to boost drug
release make it a vital ingredient in pharmaceutical manufacturing. It
is also used to prevent the formation of lumps in food products, to
maintain texture of cosmetic products, and as a fat substitute in
low-calorie foods.
Sigachi’s Telangana plant contributes a little over a fourth of its
total capacity of 21,700 million metric tons per annum.
Its shares dropped about 8% on Tuesday and were headed for their
sharpest two-day drop on record.
Sigachi halted operations at the plant for 90 days from Monday citing
damage to equipment and structures. The plant is fully insured and the
company is initiating claims.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, five people were killed and four
others injured in a massive fire at a crackers factory in the Sivakasi
manufacturing cluster in the southern Tamil Nadu state, a fire
department official said. The incident is the latest in a series of
fire accidents in the area.
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