Vedanta Acquired Power Plant In Chhattisgarh Hit By Deadly Blast, 20 Workers Dead

At least 20 workers have died after a powerful blast at Vedanta's thermal power plant in Chhattisgarh's Sakti district, with 16 others still undergoing treatment in hospitals, officials said on Wednesday.

The explosion took place on Tuesday afternoon at the plant in Singhitarai village when a steel tube carrying high pressure steam from the boiler to the turbine ruptured, causing severe burn injuries to workers present at the site.

According to officials, four workers died on the spot while nine others succumbed to injuries soon after the incident. Seven more workers died during treatment, taking the total death toll to 20.

Sakti Collector Amrit Vikas Topno said a total of 36 workers were affected in the incident. Of the 16 injured, five are being treated in Raipur while the remaining are admitted to hospitals in neighbouring Raigarh district.

The deceased include workers from several states. Six labourers were from West Bengal, five from Chhattisgarh, three each from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, two from Bihar and one from Madhya Pradesh. Authorities said families are being contacted and arrangements are being made to send the bodies to their native places after postmortem.

Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has announced compensation of five lakh rupees for the families of those who died and fifty thousand rupees for the injured. Vedanta has announced a compensation of thirty five lakh rupees for the families of the deceased along with employment support. The company also said injured workers will receive fifteen lakh rupees, salary continuation during recovery and counselling support.

Multiple inquiries have been ordered into the incident. The Chief Minister has directed the Commissioner of Bilaspur division to conduct an investigation. A separate magisterial probe has also been initiated, with the Sub Divisional Magistrate of Dabhra asked to submit a report within 30 days. The inquiry will examine the cause of the accident and whether it resulted from technical failure or human error.

The opposition Congress has demanded that an FIR be registered against the plant management and called for a judicial inquiry, alleging negligence.

The power plant was originally owned by Athena Chhattisgarh Power Ltd and remained stalled for several years. Vedanta acquired the project through insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code in 2022. The acquisition was formalised in July 2023 after approval from the National Company Law Tribunal in Hyderabad, following which the asset was merged with Vedanta Limited.

The plant has a total planned capacity of 1200 MW with two units of 600 MW each. One unit was commissioned in August last year while the second unit is still under construction.

Officials said further details will emerge after the inquiry reports are submitted.