Former Minister Demands Immediate 1 Crore Compensation for Sigachi Explosion Victims
In a strong statement issued on Friday, former minister T Harish Rao has called on the Telangana state government to release the promised compensation of 1 crore to each family affected by the tragic Sigachi Industries explosion. He emphasized that this payment must be made without linking it to other benefits such as provident fund (PF) or Employees' State Insurance (ESI), which he argues are legally due to workers independently.
Allegations of Government Failure and Compensation Shortfall
Harish Rao alleged that the state government has failed to adequately support the families of the 54 workers who lost their lives in the fire accident at Sigachi Industries. He pointed out that this failure was exposed during assembly proceedings, where the government's written reply indicated that the full compensation announced by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with ministers Vivek and Damodar Rajanarsimha, had not been delivered. According to Harish, the officials had rushed to the accident site immediately after the incident and publicly announced the 1 crore compensation per family on the spot.
Citing figures submitted in the assembly, Harish Rao revealed that a total of 24.5 crore has been paid so far to all 54 victims. This amounts to an average of approximately 45 lakh per worker's family, leaving an alleged shortfall of about 55 lakh per family. In total, he claims there is an outstanding amount of 29 crore that the government owes to the affected families. He accused the Congress-led government of attempting to evade these payments, leaving the victims' families without crucial support during their time of need.
Disputes Over Compensation Calculations and Management Accountability
Harish Rao further alleged that the management of Sigachi Industries had admitted in court to paying between 40 lakh and 42 lakh to the victims' families. However, he contended that these figures were misleadingly presented by including PF, ESI, and life insurance amounts—benefits that are legally owed to workers upon their death—alongside the company's own payment of 25 lakh. He stressed that these contributions are not compensation from the company's own funds but rather money belonging to the workers through their own contributions, and thus should not be counted as part of the government's promised compensation.
In addition, Harish claimed that medical expenses for workers who died while receiving treatment were deducted from the compensation, and families of eight workers, whose bodies were not found, had to approach offices for months to obtain death certificates. He described the situation as a clear case of negligence, citing investigations that established safety standards were not followed at the factory. Specifically, he alleged that while permission was obtained for 818 HP capacity, the machinery was expanded to 1,777 HP without proper safeguards, and there were no fire No Objection Certificates (NOC) or functional dust control systems in place.
Calls for Government Action and Asset Attachment
Harish Rao accused the government of inaction, noting that police only moved after a case was filed in the high court on behalf of the victims, leading to the arrest of the Managing Director. He suggested that subsequent developments indicated an understanding between the government and the company management, further delaying justice for the affected families.
To ensure the promised compensation is paid, Harish demanded that the government attach the assets of Sigachi Company directors under the Revenue Recovery Act. He reiterated that the 1 crore compensation announced by the Chief Minister should be paid immediately to every affected family, without any deductions or inclusion of PF and ESI amounts. He called for transparency and sincerity from the government in addressing this industrial tragedy and supporting the bereaved families.
