Dreams gone up in smoke

 

 

Silambarasan, a brilliant student, got 431 marks in his standard 10 exams last year. His poor family was thrilled. He joined the government-run Kallar Higher Secondary School to continue his studies.

To support himself, the schoolboy worked in the cracker factory in his village, K Vadakkampatti. But he had no idea that a blast in the cracker unit on July 7 would snuff out his life. He was among the 18 persons who lost their lives. Sellammal, his grandmother, was inconsolable. The village is also in mourning for the parents of Nirosha, 11, and Nehru, 9 — the couple died in the fire that engulfed the cracker factory.

K Vadakkampatti is near Usilampatti (the area once infamous for female foeticide) in Madurai district of Tamil Nadu. When TSI visited the village, there was gloom all around. When the blast occurred at 6.30 pm, the villagers initially thought crackers were being burst. By the time they realized what had happened, it was too late. Fire fighters could not douse the fire until midnight.

The VPM cracker unit, where the accident took place, is adjacent to the village. The unit has four brick-walled rooms covered with asbestos sheets and stands in the middle of a fertile land. Two rooms were completely razed. Bricks were scattered up to 50 metres.

Gurusamy, one of the villagers, has not yet recovered from the shock. “We had seen minor fire accidents. People would immediately pour water and douse the fire. But this time it was much worse. We were unable to do anything and hence informed the administration,” he said.

Duraipandi, the owner of this unit has been doing his business for a long time. But, according to villagers, he got a licence only in 1989. He started night shifts ten years ago. This unit is permitted to store only 3 kg of fire powder. But it had stocked 150 kg. Orders for Deepavali had begun to flow in and work was brisk.

This part of Tamil Nadu is known for its firecracker units. Accidents are commonplace here. The government usually gives compensation and makes promises to enforce better safety norms. “The deputy chief inspector of factories should make surprise visits once every three months to ensure that these factories follow safety norms,” says Kadir, director of Witness, a Madurai-based NGO.

He points out that rules are flouted with impunity. Factories cannot employ children and those that have more than 20 workers on the rolls are required to provide insurance cover. But these rules remain on paper.

Kadir asks: “How else one can explain the death of school children in a firecracker unit?” Tamil Nadu tops the list of firecracker accidents. According to the state labour employment department in 2006 there were 48 fatal mishaps, 60 in 2007, and 68 in 2008. As of March 2009, over 42,000 firecracker units are active in the state.

The latest accident is no more than another statistic in a long history of official apathy. The Tamil Nadu government has announced Rs 1 lakh each as compensation to the deceased. The collector has ordered an enquiry by the district revenue officer. But nothing can bring Silambarasan back to life.