More than 100 killed

A fire and explosions during a fireworks display to mark the start of the local Hindu new year killed over 100 people and injured more than 380 at a temple in India's southern Kerala state yesterday.

Thousands of devotees had packed into the Puttingal Devi temple, about 70 km from the state capital Thiruvananthapuram in the coastal district of Kollam, to watch the display that started at midnight and went on four hours, Reuters reported.

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The blaze started when a cracker fell onto a shed where the fireworks were stored, sparking a string of powerful explosions that blew the roof of the administrative block of the temple and caused another building to collapse, residents said.

"There were body parts on the floor and on the roof there was an arm," Anita Prakash, a resident said. "In the past, there's been fireworks but not on this scale."

Kerala is studded with temples managed by rich and powerful trusts that often flout local regulations. Each year temples hold fireworks displays, often competing to stage the most spectacular ones, with judges who decide the winners.

Kollam district magistrate A Shainamol said people living in the area near the temple had complained about the danger of these fireworks in the past.

"It has been confirmed that 102 people were killed... Now our focus is to provide the best treatment to the injured," Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy told reporters.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew to Kollam with a team of doctors to help state authorities cope with the large number of injured, moving swiftly to head off criticism of a lack of public safety.

The PM announced 200,000 rupees ($3,005) in compensation for the families of those killed and 50,000 rupees for those injured.

"The fire at the temple in Kollam is heart-rending and shocking beyond words," he said in a Twitter post earlier. "My thoughts are with families of the deceased and prayers with the injured."

The navy and air force were also sending helicopters to evacuate the most critically injured, officials said.

Modi has faced public criticism in the past for failing to respond quickly to disasters such as the floods in Chennai late last year. Large parts of the metropolis were under water for days before government help arrived.

Earlier this month, a flyover under construction in the eastern city of Kolkata for years collapsed killing 27 people, prompting allegations that shoddy material was used and that the metal parts had corroded during the years of delay.

NO PERMISSION

Television images from the devastated temple site showed people, some clutching children with burn injuries, being taken to hospitals. Others carried out charred bodies of victims.

Kerala's Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala told Reuters that 60 of the 100 dead had been identified while the number of people admitted to hospitals in Kollam and the state capital had risen to 383.

With Kerala in the midst of an election for a new state assembly, the fire quickly turned into a political issue as local leaders demanded an investigation.

In Kerala, Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) trails its Congress party and communist rivals. The BJP has focused on building up grassroots strength in the state for decades.

Chandy said the Kollam district administration had denied the temple authorities permission for the display and the government would investigate why they went ahead anyway.

"There was no permission to even store the fireworks," he said.

Witnesses said they had repeatedly warned the local administration about the danger of firework displays in the crowded neighbourhood. Chennithala said a case for illegal possession of explosives had been registered against the temple.

The temple trust was not immediately available for comment. The explosion from the fireworks was so strong that some parts of the temple roof caved in. Local media showed bulldozers trying to clear the area of the debris.

BANGLADESH OFFERS CONDOLENCE

Bangladesh yesterday offered condolences for the death of devotees in the blaze, reports our Diplomatic Correspondent. 

In the condolence message to his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj, Foreign Minister AS Mahmood Ali said, “I am deeply saddened to learn about the death of a large number of devotees.”

“We have our sympathies for the injured persons and hope that those who are feared trapped would be rescued safely,” he said on behalf of the government and the people of Bangladesh.

BBC adds: Indian authorities have ordered a judicial inquiry into the explosion. Kerala's government said the inquiry would work alongside the police's criminal investigation.