11 Killed, 36 Injured In Factory Explosion, PM Modi Condoles

As many as eleven people were killed and 36 others injured in an explosion that took place in a firecracker factory in Tamil Nadu on Friday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed grief on the incident saying it was "saddening".

"Fire at a firecracker factory in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu is saddening. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I hope those injured recover soon. Authorities are working on the ground to assist those affected," he tweeted.

Fire at a firecracker factory in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu is saddening. In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I hope those injured recover soon. Authorities are working on the ground to assist those affected: PM @narendramodi

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) February 12, 2021

As per reports, the cause of the explosion is suspected to be due to friction during mixing of chemicals. A total of ten fire tenders were rushed to the spot to extinguish the fire.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister E Palaniswami has announced a compensation of ₹ 3 lakh for the families of those who died in the blast and ₹ 1 lakh for the severely injured. The Centre on the other hand announced ₹ 2 lakh for the families of the victims and ₹ 50,000 for those injured.

"An ex-gratia of ₹ 2 lakh each has been approved from PMNRF for the next of kin of those who have lost their lives due to a fire in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu. ₹ 50,000 would be given to those seriously injured," a tweet from the PMO read.