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Kerala temple fire tragedy : Kollam DC says she denied permission for fireworks display

by IBNS 11 Apr 2016, 11:09 am

Kollam, Kerala, Apr 11 (IBNS) The District Collector Kollam has claimed that she denied permission for fireworks display at Puttingal temple where 110 people were killed in a fire tragedy on Sunday.

"Lot of politicians called me and requested me to allow the fireworks to go on but I stood my ground and said no," media reports on Mondayquoted Kollam Collector Shainamol as saying.

Five organisers are being questioned in connection with the incident. One contractor has died in explosion while the another suffered injuries and is undergoing treatment in a hospital. Besides those killed, more than  380 others injured in the incident.

The investigation is  underway to fix accountability for the Puttingal temple tragedy. The houses of contractors and committee members were raided. Explosives were seized during raids from godowns and intensity of explosives is yet to be ascertained.

Locals had informed police that there were excessive explosives this time.

a police case was filed against 30 people including members of the board that administers the shrine, while authorities, running nearly 1000 Hindu places of worship, said they will not accept a ban on fireworks, media reports said.


Very early on Sunday morning, 10,000 people were present at the Puttingal Devi temple, about 70 km from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, to watch a fireworks display at a major annual festival that coincides with the start of the Hindu new year.  

The display began at midnight and continued for four hours. Then suddenly, a cracker fell onto a shed where the fireworks were stored, sparking a string of powerful explosions that blew the roof of the administrative block of the temple and caused another building to collapse.

The Travancore Devaswom Board, in charge of nearly 1,000 temples, said it will not obey a ban on fireworks, and that it is up to the government to ensure public safety.

Fireworks had been banned by local officials in Kollam, but the temple went ahead with a competition.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew to Kollam on Sunday with a team of doctors to help state authorities cope with the large number of injured.