A police Havildar was killed on Friday while defusing explosive substances near Kathajodi river bank on the outskirts of Cuttack city, a senior police official said.
The deceased police havildar has been identified as Pradip Mallick(45), a trained staff of bomb disposal squad of Odisha police.
The firecrackers were seized during police raids on unauthorized firework trade. These were being defused as per the court order.
The fatal mishap is being probed into. It is being investigated whether the victim had adhered to standard operating procedure for disposing explosive substances, said Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, Anil Mishra.
An unnatural death case has been registered in this connection; the official said adding that a departmental inquiry has been instituted into the mishap.
The legal heirs of the deceased policeman will be awarded ex-gratia, financial assistance, service benefits as he died while performing official duty, he further said.