Shivamogga blast kills six; partners arrested
Six people were killed in a massive explosion in Shivamogga, the home district of Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, late on Thursday night. The blast took place 10km from the town centre when a truck, laden with explosives, was going to an ‘illegal’ quarrying site. Four of the six bodies have been retrieved, but they are yet to be identified.
Shivamogga Rural Police Inspector Sanjeev Kumar told the media the "truck was blown into pieces. It is not known yet what caused the truck to explode".
Two people — Sudhakar and Narasimha, both partners of SS Crushers, the company that had leased the land from the owner Avinash Kulkarni to mine stones — were arrested.
Kulkarni is absconding and a search is on to nab him.
According to reports, the blast took place at 10.30 pm Thursday and was accidental. PM Modi and CM Yediyurappa offered their condolences. In a tweet, the PM said: “Pained by the loss of lives in Shivamogga. Condolences to the bereaved families. Praying that the injured recover soon. The state government is providing all possible assistance to the affected.”
Yediyurappa said the mining activity in Shivamogga’s Hunasodu village, where the explosive-laden truck exploded, was being carried out illegally. “We have come to know that illegal mining activities were taking place. Action will be taken against those responsible for the incident and also if we find that officials were negligent. There are allegations officials knew about the illegal mining but did not take action. If this is true, action will be taken against everyone involved in wrongdoing. My government will also look into stopping the illegal mining activities across the state".
In a tweet, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, “The news of blast at stone mining quarry in Karnataka is tragic. Condolences to the families. Such incidents call for in-depth investigation so similar tragedies can be avoided in the future.”
Meanwhile, a mechanical structure collapsed at an illegal coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district, killing 6 miners.
In another development, over 6 people were buried alive in Jharkhand’s Koderma district when the roof of a mica mine caved in, a cop said on Friday.