Maha: Pharma firm owner booked for blast that killed 8 people

A case has been registered against the owner of a chemical factory in Palghar, where eight people were killed in an explosion, police said on Friday.

Eight people were killed and seven injured in a blast that took place at an under-construction plant of Ank Pharma at Boisar in Maharashtra's Palghar district on January 11.

A case has been registered against Natwarlal Patel (50) under section 304A (causing death by negligence) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, a senior police official said.

Patel, who was also injured in the blast, had only acquired a permit from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board and had failed to get requisite permissions from Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) and other agencies, he said.

The accused owner had also reportedly employed unskilled workers at the factory, where he was testing a product when the blast took place, the official added.