Industrial Safety in the Firecracker Sector: A Recurring Tragedy and Regulatory Failures
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Indian Polity and Governance (Key Regulatory Institutions - Petroleum & Explosives Safety Organization (PESO)); Indian Economy (Industrial Sector); Disaster Management (Man-made disasters).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 2 (Governance): Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors; Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability.
General Studies Paper 3 (Disaster Management & Economy): Disaster and disaster management; Industrial policy and its impact on safety.
General Studies Paper 4 (Ethics): Corporate ethics and the moral responsibility of employers to ensure worker safety.
Key Highlights from the News
Eight people died in an explosion at a firecracker unit in Konaseema district, Andhra Pradesh.
Such accidents are common in India leading up to Diwali.
Major Failures that Led to the Disaster:
Safety audit conducted a month before the explosion was ineffective.
An electrical fire spreading to explosives indicates a serious lapse in safety protocols.
Difficulty in identifying the victims was due to poor record keeping of the unit's workers.
Petroleum & Explosives Safety Organization (PESO) is the nodal agency that licenses firecracker units and sets safety standards.
This disaster highlights the necessity of strictly implementing and ensuring PESO's high safety protocols in all units nationwide.
The article also expresses concern that such accidents in a region like Konaseema, which has oil and natural gas pipelines, could lead to a larger disaster.
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