Nagpur factory blast: Kin of deceased victims to undergo DNA test

Nagpur, Mar 1 (PTI) Family members of 17 workers killed in a blast at the explosives factory in Maharashtra's Nagpur on Sunday will undergo DNA testing to ascertain the identities of the deceased, whose bodies are charred beyond recognition, police said.

A powerful blast ripped through the factory of SBL Energy Limited, a mining and industrial explosives manufacturer, at Raulgaon in Katol tehsil, between 7 and 7.15 am, killing 17 workers and injuring 18 others.

Inconsolable family members of the victims thronged the factory compound, about 50 km from the district headquarters, for some news about their loved ones.

"Blood samples are being collected from family members for DNA testing to identify the charred remains," a senior police official at the scene said.

Close relatives were taken to the Government Medical Hospital and College (GMCH) for the test.

"We are clueless. We don't understand what has happened, and we have yet to find the body of our ward," a grieving family member told PTI.

Representatives of SBL Energy Limited have stated that the incident occurred at the company's detonator packing unit.

The injured have been shifted to a hospital in Nagpur immediately after the blast, the police said. PTI CLS ARU