Former Home Minister Demands Criminal Cases Against Officials After Deadly Nagpur Explosion
Nagpur: Former home minister Anil Deshmukh has issued a forceful demand for criminal cases and arrests against senior officials responsible for alleged negligence following the catastrophic explosion at the SBL Energy Limited explosives unit in Katol taluka. The tragic incident resulted in the deaths of 19 workers, sparking outrage and calls for accountability.
Deshmukh Accuses Regulatory Authorities of Ignoring Safety Warnings
Speaking at a high-level review meeting chaired by Nagpur district guardian minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule at the divisional commissioner's office, Deshmukh launched a scathing attack on regulatory bodies. He accused the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO) and the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH) of blatantly ignoring repeated warnings about critical safety lapses in explosives factories across the district.
"FIRs must be registered and arrests made against the senior officials responsible for negligence," Deshmukh declared emphatically. "I wrote demanding safety audits of all explosives companies, but no action was taken by PESO or DISH. Because of this inaction, lives were lost."
Detailed Timeline of Inaction and Systemic Failures
Deshmukh revealed that he had written to authorities on September 8, 2025, urgently calling for comprehensive safety audits of all explosives manufacturing units. Despite this formal warning, both PESO and DISH failed to initiate any preventive measures, leading directly to the devastating explosion.
The former minister presented alarming statistics, noting that nearly 46 workers have died in explosions across Nagpur district over the past two and a half years. He warned that these repeated accidents represent a systemic failure to enforce basic safety norms in hazardous industries.
"Merely filing cases will not stop this," Deshmukh cautioned. "Strict preventive measures are required. Companies that do not follow safety norms must be shut down immediately and their licences cancelled."
Threat of Mass Agitation and Calls for Independent Inquiry
Deshmukh issued an ultimatum, warning that if transparent safety audits of all sensitive factories were not conducted through an independent agency within days, a mass agitation would be launched to demand worker safety protections.
Echoing these concerns, Ramtek MP Shyamkumar Barve emphasized the need for a high-level, impartial, and time-bound inquiry that would fix responsibility and implement measures to prevent such tragedies from recurring.
High-Level Meeting Attended by Senior Officials
The critical review meeting saw participation from numerous senior officials, including:
- Minister of state for finance and planning Ashish Jaiswal
- Divisional commissioner Vijayalakshmi Bidari
- District collector Vipin Itankar
- Superintendent of police Harsh Poddar
- Other key administrative and law enforcement representatives
The gathering underscored the seriousness with which authorities are treating the explosion and the subsequent demands for accountability and systemic reform in industrial safety protocols.
