Five workers killed, five injured in blast at pharma chemical unit in Gujarat's Bharuch

Five workers were killed and five others injured in an explosion at a chemical unit in the Saykha industrial estate of Gujarat's Bharuch district late on Friday night, officials said.

The blast took place at around 10 pm at SynZeal Pharmachem, a unit in the Saykha GIDC area of Vagra taluka that manufactures pharmaceutical intermediates. Officials said the plant had been set up about a year ago.

What happened

Bharuch Sub-Divisional Magistrate Manisha Manani said the force of the explosion ripped apart a reactor tank and threw machinery parts across the premises. An official of the state's Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH) said the blast occurred during a hydrogenation process and was followed by a leak of methylene dichloride, a toxic solvent.

Superintendent of Police Akshyaraj Makwana confirmed the death toll. Those killed include workers from Bharuch and Gir Somnath districts of Gujarat and from Uttar Pradesh. The five injured workers, who are from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, are being treated in hospital.

Investigation under way

Teams from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board, DISH and the police reached the site after the explosion. Officials said the exact cause is still being investigated. Hydrogenation, a common step in making drug intermediates, involves reacting chemicals with hydrogen gas under pressure, which makes strict control of temperature, pressure and equipment condition critical. Methylene dichloride is a widely used industrial solvent that can be harmful when inhaled in large quantities.

Why it matters

Gujarat accounts for a large share of India's chemical and pharmaceutical output, and Bharuch, with its string of industrial estates along the Narmada estuary, is one of the country's biggest chemical manufacturing hubs. The district has recorded several deadly industrial accidents in recent years. Many of the workers in these plants are migrants from other states. The latest blast is likely to bring fresh attention to safety audits and the handling of high-risk processes such as hydrogenation in smaller and newer units.