Trail of deadly blasts in Maharashtra’s Nagpur; former Home Minister demands safety audits

Maharashtra’s former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, in a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has raised concerns over the series of blasts at explosives factories near Nagpur in recent years, highlighting over 20 workers’ deaths in explosions.

In a letter dated on September 8, 2025, Mr. Deshmukh wrote to Mr. Fadnavis listing the number of blasts and casualties in Nagpur, demanding the Chief Minister to conduct immediate safety audits. He shared the letter in public domain on Tuesday (March 3, 2026), two days after a blast at SBL Energy in Nagpur’s Raulgaon that killed at least 18 people and left 20 injured.

At least 10 factories in Nagpur’s Bazargaon area — including Solar Explosives Industries Ltd., Chamundi Explosives, and Asian Fire Works — that are explosives factories have been plagued by frequent blasts, the former Home Minister said.

Mr. Deshmukh listed several tragedies, including the September 3, 2025 explosion at Solar Explosives in Chakdoh, that killed two and injured 8 during crystallization of energetic materials. The company’s shares dropped by 3% subsequently. He also mentioned the February 6, 2026 blast at Asian Fire Works in Kotwalbardi, which killed two workers.

Apart from these, 9 workers were killed at Solar Explosives on December 17, 2024; 9 were killed at Chamundi Explosives in Dhamna; 2 died at Economics Explosives, a Solar subsidiary on August 12, 2023.

Mr. Deshmukh listed 23 deaths and several disabilities in the past two years in the letter, blaming lapses despite PESO, DRDO, and CFEES oversight.

The former Home Minister urged Mr. Fadnavis to form an expert community “to conduct comprehensive audits under the Explosives Act 1884 and Factories Act 1948, with state-central coordination to enforce safety.”