Nagpur: Two days after an explosion ripped through the Ordnance Factory Bhandara (OFBA), killing eight workers, the defence manufacturing unit’s top brass was shunted out. The parent defence PSU — Munitions India Limited (MIL) — issued the orders on January 26, transferring the Chief General Manager Sunil Sapre and two other officers to its headquarters in Pune. Sapre was replaced by D U Deshmukh as head of the unit.
Sources said the blast had hit worker-confidence and many were reluctant to return to work. However, senior management officials, including those at its headquarters in Pune said the situation is normal at OFBA. Another source confirmed there was a partial paralysis at the shop floor immediately after the blast, but the situation has normalised.
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OFBA is a key defence material production facility in the country. High-energy materials like RDX for a whole gamut of ammunition are manufactured here. MIL is one of the seven defence public sector corporations created three years ago out of the ordnance factory setup. Another factory at Chandrapur is also part of MIL, which carries out filling of empty shells with explosives. Since OFBA makes explosives, it is a vital part of the production chain, said sources.
MIL has initiated an inquiry into the matter. Along with the transfers, an officer of the rank of Chief General Manager has been ordered to stay put at Bhandara and report to the Director of Operations in Pune on the evolving situation. The officer has been mandated to look into labour-related issues and safety concerns.
Sources said the deployment of an apprentice in a unit handling sensitive explosives is also being probed by various agencies. One apprentice was killed among the eight deceased, and another injured, triggering massive protests by all unions. As MIL is carrying out an internal probe into the matter, the police, which set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), is also independently looking into the matter, said sources.
Apprentices are inexperienced to handle explosives and are only deployed for training, said union leaders. Demands for higher compensation were also raised during protests. A compensation of Rs 1 crore was sought of which Rs 50 lakh was immediately released.
