Explosion at Andhra Pradesh pharma plant kills 16, injures 30 others

At least 16 workers were killed and 30 others injured in a massive explosion that ripped through a multinational pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday.

State labour minister Vasamsetty Subhash said the explosion in the reactor occurred during the lunch break at pharmaceutical company Escientia Advanced Sciences Private Limited, located in the Atchutapuram special economic zone (SEZ) in Andhra Pradesh’s Anakapalli district.

Of the 16 deceased, 10 of them have been identified. The victims include assistant general manager V Sanyasi Naidu (50), laboratory in-charge Rami Reddy (35), chemist N Harika (22), production operator Partha Sarathy (23), plant helper Y Chinna Rao (25), P Rajasekhar (22), plant operators K Mohan (20), Ganesh, H Prashant and M Narayana Rao.

“It will take some more time to identify the other victims. Rescue operations are still going on. Because of the heavy smoke coming out of the factory, it is becoming difficult to take up quick operations,” Subhash said. Atchutapuram inspector of police M Buchaiah said a first information report (FIR) in the case will be registered soon.

Anakapalli superintendent of police M Deepika said that the exact cause of the explosion in the reactor was not yet known, but it resulted in a fire that gutted the entire factory and trapped several workers inside.

The accident also caused thick smoke to cover the company’s surrounding area. The loud noise from the explosion caused panic among the local villagers.

“We immediately rushed eight large fire brigades to the scene to extinguish the flames. Later, three more fire engines joined them to put out the fire,” Deepika said.

The blast in the reactor resulted in the collapse of the slab of the first floor of the factory. “There were at least 300 workers in the factory at the time of the explosion. But most of them had come out because of the lunch break. It is believed that some of the workers might have been trapped under the debris of the collapsed slab,” Deepika added.

Anakapalli district collector Vijaya Krishnan said the fire broke out at 2:15 pm at Escientia Advanced Sciences Pvt Ltd at Atchutapuram in Anakapalli district. “The factory operates with 381 employees in two shifts. The blast occurred during lunch time. Therefore, staff presence was less,” Krishnan added.

At least 30 workers suffered burn injuries and were shifted to NTR District Hospital at Anakapalli, while others were rushed to hospitals in Visakhapatnam, 20km away.

The SEZ is spread over an area of 5595.47 acres of land in Atchutapuram and Rambilli districts. It was notified as a SEZ by the Centre in 2007.

Escientia Advanced Sciences, which manufactures intermediate chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) commenced production in April 2019 with an investment of ₹200 crore.

It is located in a 40-acre campus in the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation’s (APIIC) multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) at Atchutapuram cluster.

According to the company profile, Escientia is based in South Windsor, Connecticut, United States. It is a global contract research, development, and manufacturing organisation serving pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the discovery, development, and launch of small-molecule drugs.

The company has two R&D centers in Connecticut (US) and Hyderabad, as well as a commercial manufacturing site at Anakapalli.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed shock over the loss of lives and called up district authorities to enquire about the incident.

Expressing concern over the possibility of increasing the death toll, Naidu directed that the authorities take all steps to prevent the loss of any further lives. He asked the higher authorities and industry department officials to rush to the incident spot and stay put there till all the workers were rescued.

The chief minister assured that the government would stand by the families of the deceased and extend all possible assistance.

A month ago, a worker was killed and two others sustained injuries in an explosion of a reactor at Vasanth Chemicals, a chemical factory in Atchutapuram SEZ. In the same SEZ, six workers were killed in June 2023 after a chemical reactor blast at Sahiti Pharma.