Three workers die in chemical factory in Mehsana, owner booked

Palanpur: Three workers died after inhaling the toxic fumes of bromine gas in a chemical factory located in Tundali village near Mehsana on Monday night.

The incident happened in Raj Chemicals in Someshwar GIDC and police on Tuesday booked its owner Ravi Patel and contractor Mitul Mistry for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

Those who died were Ramsingh Ravana, Uttam Kumar Gavariya and Pukhraj Sampaji, all natives of Jhalore district in Rajasthan.

Preliminary investigation suggested that the bromine gas might have got liberated due to some reaction when the three were emptying the tanker of sodium bromide into a storage tank. Sources said the gas might have got liberated from sodium bromide due to reaction with some other chemical in the tank.

A team of Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB), Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and Directorate of Industrial Safety (DISH) have also joined the probe.

According to the complaint lodged by Ramsingh’s brother Dinesh, he got a call from Ravi Patel’s brother-in-law on Monday night, informing that his brother had fallen unconscious due to sudden increase in ‘gas pressure’ in a tank. Dinesh, who works in Sanand, told police that when he reached the unit, he saw three persons lying unconscious on the floor. The team of 108 emergency services was called by they declared all three dead.

He further alleged that there was no safety equipment on the bodies of the deceased and the accident was caused due to utter negligence of the owner and contractor.

The complaint was lodged with Langhanj police station.