CPI (M) State Secretariat member Ch. Narsinga Rao and district secretary K. Loknadham on Saturday demanded safety audit of all chemical units in north Andhra and a criminal case registered against Divi’s Laboratories Ltd at Uppada near Bheemunipatnam for the death of three workers following a blast on April 6.
Addressing a press conference here, they said even after so many days of the fatal accident, HRD Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao, who represents Bheemli constituency, had not visited the accident-hit factory.
Stating that accidents were occurring at regular intervals at various pharma and other chemical units in North Andhra, they said a safety audit was required immediately as the future of over 45,000 workers employed by various pharma units was at stake.
Mr. Rao said the Divi’s unit should shutdown its operations till the safety audit was conducted by independent experts. He said as of now three had succumbed to burns after April 6 accident and two more were undergoing treatment at a private hospital with severe burns.
The CPI (M) leader said not only there was failure by the statutory agencies to ensure adherence to safety precautions at Jawaharlal Nehru Pharma City, Parawada, Hetero Drugs, Nakkapalli, Deccan Chemicals, near Payakaraopeta and other areas but also the implementation of welfare measures for the workforce was a big casualty at various chemical units.
