Andhra Pradesh: 14 hospitalised after ammonia gas leak at milk dairy unit

Minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy has spoken with the Chittoor District Collector and ordered an inquiry into the incident. He gave directions to better treatment to the affected people.

Chittoor (AP): Fourteen people were affected after an ammonia gas leak at a milk dairy unit at Bandapalli in Puthalapattu Mandal here on Thursday (August 20) and have been shifted to hospital.

"We got the information that Ammonia gas was leaked at the Hatson company milk process unit near Puthalapattu at around 5 PM. 14 labourers who were working in that shift are brought to the hospital here in Chittoor. Among them, 3 people are serious and probably will be shifted to SVIMS or Ruia hospital in Tirupati," Dr Narayan Bharat Gupta, Chittoor district collector said.

"All are stable. All of them are women. It is to yet be ascertained whether this incident is a result of the negligence of management or the negligence of the workers. Industries department General Manager and fire department officials will review the ground-level situation on Friday," he said.

Putalapattu sub inspector, Chittoor district informed that the gas has been contained at the dairy.

Minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy has spoken with the Chittoor district collector and ordered an inquiry into the incident. He gave directions to better treatment to the affected people.

The latest incident comes three months after a deadly gas leak near the port city of Visakhapatnam, at a plant operated by a unit of South Korea's LG Chem Ltd, killed 12 and led to the hospitalization of hundreds.