Five killed as Kaushambi firecracker-unit blast flattens house near Prayagraj border
This digitally enhanced screenshot from a widely circulated video on social media shows the site of the blast in Kaushambi.
New Delhi: At least five people were reported killed and several others injured after a powerful explosion tore through a firecracker-manufacturing unit in Uttar Pradesh’s Kaushambi district on Monday. The blast occurred at Mahmadpur village near Manauri, close to the Prayagraj–Kaushambi border, within the jurisdiction of Pipri police station.
Preliminary accounts indicated that firecrackers were being made inside a house located some distance from the main settlement when the explosion occurred. The building was reduced to rubble, but the cause of the detonation and the unit’s licensing status had not been established at the time of reporting.
The explosion was reportedly audible nearly two kilometres away and damaged several surrounding structures, with cracks appearing in some houses. Villagers carried the injured through nearby fields to reach medical assistance as emergency teams moved into the area.
Police personnel were deployed from both Kaushambi and neighbouring Prayagraj because of the site’s proximity to the district boundary, while the surrounding area was evacuated to facilitate rescue operations. A local report said Indian Air Force personnel also joined the response as the blast site is close to Air Force Station Manauri.
Firefighters, police and administrative teams continued searching the debris while senior officers began gathering evidence from the site. The identities of the dead, the precise number and condition of the injured, and the quantity of explosive material stored at the premises were yet to be officially disclosed.
Under India’s Explosives Rules, 2008, explosives cannot be manufactured at any location unless the factory or premises holds the prescribed licence, even when production involves small quantities. Investigators are consequently expected to examine the unit’s approvals, storage arrangements, workforce safeguards and compliance with the mandatory separation from surrounding buildings.
The latest disaster comes more than two years after an explosion at a licensed fireworks factory in Kaushambi’s Bharwari area killed eight workers and injured several others in February 2024. The recurrence is likely to renew scrutiny of inspections and safety enforcement at both licenced and unauthorized firecracker units across the district.
