BENGALURU, India, July 2, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - The death toll from an explosion 
at an Indian chemical factory rose to 40, the company said Wednesday, as 
teams scoured the site for a third day.

Industrial disasters are common in India, with experts blaming poor planning 
and lax enforcement of safety rules.

Factory owner Sigachi Industries said in a statement that 40 workers were 
killed and 33 others injured in the explosion in Sangareddy in India's 
southern Telangana state.

It increases an earlier toll of 36 dead.

The company said it offered compensation of 10 million rupees ($116,000) to 
the families of those killed, while those injured will receive medical 
support.

The factory makes components that can be included in medical pills.

A fire department official told AFP on Wednesday that search operations were 
ongoing at the factory site.

State Chief Minister Revanth Reddy visited on Tuesday, with a video released 
by his office showing piles of twisted metal in the wreckage of the factory.

Reddy's office said a committee was investigating the cause of the explosion.