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RK Agarwal, president of the Bulk Drug Manufacturers Association (BDMA) in Hyderabad, has stated that the association is actively analyzing the situation following yesterday’s explosion at Sigachi Pharma Industries in Pashamylaram.
He said the company is not an API manufacturing unit, but an excipient manufacturing company. However, it is a member of the association.
“It was a sudden explosion, and nobody knows the cause of it. We are analyzing the situation. More than Rs. 50 crore in losses occurred", he said. This is very serious accident and nobody could get a chance to escape. Details from the plant are not available as most of the people working in the plant at that time are no more available.”
As of now, the company's management has not released official information regarding the cause of the blast or the total number of casualties. However, various agencies including police report that the death toll has risen to 35 by yesterday evening.
Speaking to Pharmabiz, Agrawal confirmed that Sigachi Pharma, a Telangana-based company with two additional units in Gujarat, is a member of the BDMA. While association leaders are currently in discussions with the company's management, they have not yet disclosed any clear information. Meanwhile, police and other investigating agencies are actively probing the incident.
KV Rambabu, president of the Telangana Drug Manufacturers Association said Sigachi Pharma is a manufacturer of the excipient, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), but their association is BDMA. The company is supplying MCC to all formulation units in Hyderabad. It is purely a chemical company.
Quoting reports, sources informed Pharmabiz that, as of Tuesday, July 1, the number of fatalities has climbed to between 34 and 45, with dozens more injured. As regards the cause of the blast, they said preliminary investigations suggest a massive temperature build-up in a spray dryer unit, used for processing MCC, may have caused the explosion. Meanwhile, Sigachi Industries announced a complete production halt at its Hyderabad unit for an estimated 90 days to facilitate repairs and restoration.
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