Patna: A loud explosion took place during disposal of recovered bombs and firecrackers near a canal in Bhaluara Takia village under GB Nagar police station area of Siwan on Saturday. Panic spread in surrounding area due to sound of explosion. Windowpanes and asbestos roofs of several nearby houses were broken due to the blast. Angered by the incident, villagers held policemen present on spot hostage. During this, Maharajganj SDPO Aman and G B Nagar SHO Manoj Kumar Singh were also gheraoed by people.The Siwan district administration has launched a special drive against illegal firecracker manufacturing, storage and sale following the Oct 23 blast at a house in Alampur village under Jamo police station.A special inspection drive was conducted on Saturday and will continue on Sunday. District magistrate (DM) Vijay Prakash Meena and SP Bharat Soni directed circle officers and SHOs to conduct intensive checks and take legal action against violators.The five victims of Friday’s blast were identified as Amruddin Ahmad, 70, Muskan Siddiqui, 20, Khushbu Siddiqui, 10, Arshad Siddiqui, 8, all residents of Alampur, and Rajkumar alias Bhola, 35, of Sadarpur. Rajkumar was a daily wage worker involved in cracker manufacturing. Their bodies were sent to Sadar Hospital for post-mortem.Residents said cracker manufacturing had continued at Amruddin’s house for 35-40 years and recalled explosions there in 2000 and 2004, in which his son Amurat and Bihari Mahto were killed and Amruddin injured.Jeev Narayan Yadav, representative of the local Mukhiya Sangh, said manufacturing was continuing in four to five houses, all belonging to relatives from the Sheikh community. He said demand during weddings, Chhath Puja and Muharram made it profitable.Soni said Amruddin had obtained a wholesale cracker licence in 2010 but had not renewed it. “Further legal action would be taken against people responsible for the lapses,” he said.
