The explosion incident at a firecracker factory in Jodhan village of Ludhiana district is an example of negligence and apathy.
The explosion incident in a firecracker factory in village Jodhan of Ludhiana district is an example of negligence and apathy of civil and police officials. In this incident that took place on Tuesday, one person was killed and three others were seriously injured. The condition of a 16-year-old girl among the injured has been described as extremely critical. According to media reports, the explosion not only blew off the roofs of this unit, but also caused extensive damage to the surrounding houses.
According to the laws, such units should not be located inside residential areas under any circumstances. But the record of such incidents in Punjab during the last ten years shows that such domestic, small or medium scale units generally prepare and store their goods in dilapidated buildings in residential areas and run the entire business from there. The main reason for doing so is the economy of these units.
Due to limited capital, they resort to every economical step. In industrial or non-residential areas where rent is high, there is a high possibility of catching the eye of government departments and coming under the tax structure. That is why preference is given to setting up business centers in villages within the urban area. These locations serve as production units as well as residences. The premises where the Jodhan blast took place was both a business center and a residence. Media reports say that the original owner of this premises had rented out his plot to a migrant from Uttar Pradesh. He had later handed it over to the family making crackers. Apart from the members of that family, five-six other workers were also present at the time of the explosion. Most of them managed to save their lives.
In view of the continuous occurrence of such tragedies in Punjab, the administration and the police are expected to prioritize caution and not allow anyone to run commercial activities, especially units that pose a threat to human lives, within densely populated areas. But it has been observed that such caution is rarely shown by civil or police officials.
The rule of reporting tenants to the relevant police stations and verifying the information given by them is also rarely followed in such areas. This is the reason why the police did not have any concrete information about the real owner of the building or plot where the Jodhan blast took place till late Tuesday night. It is clear that while the owner of the firecracker factory site did not show any sense of duty, the police also acted negligently in discharging their responsibility.
The police may have arrested two people in connection with the Jodhan blast, but this is not a significant incident in itself. The role of both of them is said to be that of intermediaries. Even after the tragedy of the firecracker factory blast in Lambi (Muktsar Sahib district) in May last year, which claimed five lives and injured more than 30 people, the police had made some (maybe 9) arrests, but after that, there have been signs that the case is lying dormant.
The most serious such accident took place in Batala in September 2019. There, a fire and explosion incident in a firecracker factory had claimed 23 lives and seriously injured 27 people. At that time, there was an impression that the government would take some drastic, forward-looking steps. But after such a tragedy, the then Congress government shied away from its responsibility by giving limited financial compensation. The current AAP government is also following the same path.
It is an undeniable fact that poor families get their livelihood from crackers or fireworks manufacturing units. But administrative and police officials should also be held accountable for regulating these units and making them comply with the rules and laws. The Jodhan tragedy is a serious warning to fulfill this need soon.
Jodhan tragedy: Administrative accountability should be fixed
