Minor boy succumbs to injuries after chemical drum explosion in Bengal's Bhangar

Kolkata, Feb 25 (IANS) One of the three children, critically injured in an explosion in a drum filled with chemicals in the Bhangar area of West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday morning.

According to the police, the child, identified as nine-year-old Sadiqul Ahmed from Kharagachi in the Bhangar area, had suffered 95 per cent injuries in the explosion on February 17. He was undergoing treatment at MR Bangur Hospital in Kolkata. At around 6 a.m., he died while undergoing treatment. Sadiqul's family has been devastated after losing their son.

The two other children, who were seriously injured in the same explosion, are said to be stable.

Amidst the mourning, local residents have expressed their anger. They said that a drum filled with about 200 litres of light diesel oil (LDO) was kept on the side of the road for road repair work. They are questioning why the drum filled with chemicals was lying open in a populated area.

Questions are being raised about why security measures were not taken. Local residents said that if the drum filled with chemicals had not been kept on the side of the road, Sadiqul would not have been killed, and other children would not have suffered.

It may be recalled that four children were injured after a drum filled with chemicals exploded on February 17 while they were playing on the side of the road. Unable to bear the pain, a minor jumped into a nearby pond. Three of the four injured minors receiving serious burn injuries, were shifted to MR Bangur Hospital in Kolkata for treatment.

It was learnt that repair work was underway on the seven-kilometre pitch road from Ghatakpukur to Madhya Kharagachi in Canning Purba Assembly constituency.

Upon receiving the news of the incident, Deputy Commissioner of Bhangar Police Division, Saikat Ghosh and Trinamool MLA from Canning East, Saokat Molla, reached the spot. They facilitated the admission of three injured children to the MR Bangur Hospital. After battling for life for more than a week, one of the three injured boys died.