Sigachi pharma blast: Death toll rises to 42

The death toll in the Sigachi Industries blast in Sangareddy has climbed to 42, after two more victims succumbed to injuries and forensic tests confirmed two DNA matches, officials said.

Sangareddy Superintendent of Police Paritosh Pankaj said that Jitender, a native of Odisha, died at Dhruva Hospital on Sunday morning, while Manmohan Choudhary from Bihar passed away on Saturday night at Pranav Hospital. “DNA matches of a body as well as a body part were confirmed, making the toll 42,” the SP added.

Patancheru Government Hospital Superintendent Srinivas Reddy explained that while 40 are complete bodies, two are just body parts which have been handed over to the respective families after DNA testing.

Bodies sent to native places

The bodies were handed over to the respective families and sent to their native places with full police escort. Two constables accompanied each ambulance to ensure safe passage and official protocol.

Meanwhile, the search operations continued at the blast site, with personnel from the Fire, SDRF, HYDRAA, local police and Revenue departments engaged in combing through debris.

As of Sunday evening, officials confirmed that 44 pieces of human remains have been recovered from the site, days after the explosion, which left over 30 others injured.

“A total of four body fragments, mainly pieces of bones, were recovered today. These are being sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Hyderabad for DNA analysis to establish identity,” said Patancheru Government Hospital Superintendent (SP) Srinivas Reddy.

On June 30, a massive explosion ripped through Sigachi Industries Pvt. Ltd., a pharmaceutical unit in Pashamylaram near Hyderabad.