In a tragic incident, three workers lost their lives, and six others sustained injuries when a fire engulfed a food processing unit in the Narela Industrial Area of Delhi during the early hours of Saturday. The Delhi Police received a distress call at 3:35 am, alerting them to the blaze at the factory of Shayam Kripa Foods, which specialized in processing dry moong dal.
According to a police officer, the fire rapidly spread throughout the factory, trapping several workers inside the building. The Delhi Fire Services promptly responded to the emergency, dispatching 14 fire tenders to the scene. Firefighters battled the flames for several hours before successfully dousing the blaze by noon.
During the rescue operation, nine people were safely evacuated from the burning building and immediately rushed to Satyawadi Raja Harish Chandra Hospital in Narela for medical attention. However, three of the rescued workers, identified as Shyam (24), Ram Singh (30), and Beerpal (42), succumbed to their injuries and were declared dead by the hospital authorities.
The six injured workers, namely Pushpender (26), Akash (19), Mohit Kumar (21), Ravi Kumar (19), Monu (25), and Lalu (32), were subsequently transferred to Safdarjung Hospital for further treatment of their burn injuries. The police have not released any information regarding their current condition.
Preliminary investigations conducted by the police suggest that the fire may have originated from a gas leak in one of the pipelines that supplied gas to the burners used for roasting the moong dal. As the fire rapidly spread throughout the factory, it caused the compressor to overheat, ultimately resulting in a powerful blast.
The incident has raised concerns about the safety measures and protocols in place at industrial units, particularly those dealing with flammable materials or processes involving high temperatures. The police and relevant authorities are expected to conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the fire and assess whether proper safety standards were being followed at the Shayam Kripa Foods Private Limited factory.
The tragic loss of lives and the injuries sustained by the workers have left their families devastated and the local community in shock. The incident serves as a grim reminder of the importance of implementing stringent safety measures and conducting regular inspections to prevent such accidents from occurring in the future.
As the investigation into the incident continues, the focus will likely shift towards identifying any lapses in safety protocols and holding those responsible accountable for the loss of lives and injuries caused by the fire. The authorities will also need to assess the damage caused to the factory and determine the steps necessary to prevent similar incidents from happening in other industrial units across the city.
