Six factory workers were burnt to death Wednesday in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad after a fire broke out at an air conditioning manufacturing unit, police said.
The workers were sleeping inside the factory premises when a suspected electric short circuit sparked the blaze that quickly engulfed the workshop, which was stocked with flammable material.
“Six workers were killed and their bodies were charred beyond recognition,” P. V. Padmaja, police chief of the densely populated Shamshabad locality, where the incident occurred, told AFP.
The officer said that one of the two doors in the room was bolted from outside, meaning the victims had little opportunity to escape the blaze.
“We are investigating the circumstances leading to the tragedy and have charged the factory owner for negligence,” she said.
The victims were migrant workers from the impoverished eastern states of Bihar and Jharkhand.
Workplace accidents are common in India because of poor safety standards and lax enforcement of existing regulations.
Many workers use their workplaces as accommodation to save on living costs in big cities.
Six workers suffocated to death in the western city of Pune in December when a fire swept through a bakery overnight.
Thirteen workers died at an illegal garment manufacturing factory in New Delhi in November after a short circuit triggered a fire.
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