Police: Fire at Indian Firecracker Factory Kills 20

• PM Modi offers condolences over the incident.
• The event took place at a licensed factory in Tamil Nadu.
• Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister expresses “deep sorrow”.

A fire broke out at a firecracker manufacturing plant in southern India on Sunday, resulting in at least 20 deaths and six injuries, according to police reports.

Local police chief N Shreenatha told AFP that “20 individuals are confirmed dead” following the incident at a licensed factory in Tamil Nadu’s Virudhunagar district.

Rescue operations are ongoing at the scene, and the cause of the fire remains undetermined.

Accidents in industrial settings are frequent in India, often caused by lax safety compliance and poor enforcement of regulations.

In a social media statement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his “sympathy to those who lost loved ones” in what he called a “deeply upsetting” event.

Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister M.K. Stalin described the fatalities as “tragic” and shared his “deepest sorrow” in a post on X.

Earlier this week, an explosion at a power plant in central India claimed the lives of more than 20 people.

Last month, a blaze at a fireworks factory in western India resulted in 17 fatalities.