Two labourers dead, five injured in furnace blast in Punjab's Mandi Gobindgarh

Surinder Bhardwaj

Fatehgarh Sahib, March 12

Two labourers were killed and five injured — three of them seriously — in a blast in a furnace in Mandi Gobindgarh town on Saturday night.

Seriously injured were rushed to DMC, Ludhiana, after first-aid and two were admitted to a private hospital in Mandi Gobindgarh.

The deceased have been identified as Parmod Mandal, who died on the way to hospital and Chandan Kumar Sharma, who succumbed to injuries during treatment. 

The police have registered the case against the owner Ankur Garg under Sections 285, 287, 336, 337 and 304A IPC on the complaint of one Sunil Dass, a resident of Bihar presently residing in Gurunanak Colony, Mandi Gobindgarh. No arrest has been made so for.

Amloh DSP Jangjit Singh said Sunil Dass in the FIR lodged at Mandi Gobindgarh Police Station said the labourers were working at Shri Ram Multimetals furnace at Kumbhra village near Mandi Gobindgarh. “At 1 am as the labourers were putting scrap in the furnace a blast occurred suddenly and the workers were trapped in melted iron.”

He alleged that the furnace owner had not provided them with any safety equipment due to which two labourers died and five were seriously injured. Had he provided them with safety equipment their lives could have been saved, the complainant alleged.

The DSP added that police have registered the case and of the five injured three have been admitted to DMC, Ludhiana, and two are in a private hospital in Mandi Gobindgarh. He said police have started the investigation and action would be taken as per law.