Three people killed in blast at chemical factory in north-east Mumbai

At least three persons were killed and three others injured in a blast in the Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilisers Ltd factory in Mumbai on Saturday, police said.The explosion, at the factory in the Chembur area of northeast Mumbai, is suspected to have taken place in a boiler which was undergoing some maintenance work.Top police, company and rescue officials have rushed to the site and further details are awaited.The deceased were identified as Dilip Pawar, Govind Kumar and Mehmood Alam Noormohmad, said a senior police official.Mumbai police spokesperson Ashoke Dhude said, "As per preliminary information, maintenance work was on when the incident took place."Police said as per one of the injured, the maintenance work was given to a private firm and the explosion occurred when the welding was going on.Despite repeated attempts, RCF officials could not be reached for comments.Fertiliser Minister Ananth Kumar has announced compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to families of the deceased persons and Rs 50,000 to the injured.Besides this, RCF will also bear all the treatment expenses of the injured persons.RCF Managing Director Manoj Mishra, who is holding additional charge of the company, said the blast took place at the boiler which was undergoing maintenance work.Mishra added that an investigation is on to find out the cause of the explosion. Meanwhile, the other two boilers and all other plants are fully safe and are in operation.He assured that there will be no impact on production of fertilisers.(With inputs from PTI and IANS)