Following the blast at a chemical factory in Hapur, initial investigations have revealed that gunpowder could have been used in manufacturing toy guns. The blast took place at a factory named Ruhi Industry.

As per the reports, the gunpowder was found at the site, that killed around 13 people and left 20 injured when the boiler exploded on Saturday.

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According to the police officials,  some long plastic cartridges have been recovered from the premises of the factory.

“Preliminary probes suggest that some cartridges that are used in toy guns were also manufactured in the factory. The explosion was so strong that its sound was heard 10 km away and some of the factories located in the vicinity were damaged,” said the sources.

According to the preliminary probe, the owner of the factory has been identified as Dilshad, said Inspector General Parveen Kumar.

The factory manufactured electronic equipment and got its licence in 2021.

“A committee will be formed to probe the incident. Police have accessed the footage of the entire factory to know the exact cause,” said Hapur District Magistrate Medha Roopam.

She further said that they are currently waiting for the forensic report to proceed further in the blast case.

The district magistrate also said that other factories in the area are being inspected and action would also be taken against officials concerned if it was found in the probe that the incident took place due to their laxity.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has also asked officials to get the accident investigated by experts.

The police have also registered an FIR under Section 304 (culpable homicide).