Punhana(Mewat), June 2
Four members of a family involved in illegal manufacturing and sale of firecrackers died when the stockpile in their house in Hatan village, about 15 km from here, exploded
in the afternoon.
The development brings to the fore the apparent “negligence” and what is widely perceived as “collusion” of the security agencies in allowing such illegal trade to flourish in the village.
Kishan Singh, his wife Sonu and their two kids — Naresh (15) and Somvati (13) — died on the spot. Their other two children, Rajkumari (5) and Kailash (3), were saved as they had gone out to play with their friends.
The impact was so powerful that the walls of three rooms crumbled and the house turned into debris. Parts of the bodies of the kids were found lying in a neighbour’s house.
The blast caused panic among
the villagers and they ran towards their fields.
Hitesh, who stays a few houses away, said he was having his meals when he heard the thunderous sound. He got numbed for some moments. His first instinct was to run out into the open. When he came out of his house, he spotted other persons of the village running towards the fields, he said.
Firecrackers kept on exploding for a few minutes and smoke and debris could be seen bellowing out of the roof. “It was a kind of inferno,” said Rupesh of the village.
The villagers could gather courage to return from the fields to the village
only after an hour of the incident.
The police also arrived after more than one hour of the incident. When the police and the public reached the spot, the family members had perished.
The police chief of Mewat district, Mr Hardip Singh Doon, visited the spot. He said he would get the matter investigated into.
It was a gory sight at the place with charred parts of the bodies littered all round. The bodies were sent to the Al Afia Hospital at Mandi Khera village for a post-mortem examination.
It was apparent that the villagers were trying to hide details about the business of the deceased. They expressed ignorance about stockpiles of firecrackers in the house. They expressed complete ignorance about the details of the business of the deceased.
However, inquires revealed that the deceased was in the business of manufacturing and selling firecrackers for the past few years. His entire family was involved in the business. He used to supply firecrackers to clients for marriage celebrations. He was hired by the clients not only for supplying firecrackers, but also for holding firecracker shows during marriage celebrations.
The household also used to supply these during the Divali season.
There are many who vouch that illegal manufacturing and sale of firecrackers has been going on in a number of villages of the Mewat region for the past many years. It is a flourishing business in these villages, they maintain.
