Short-staffed PESO's help sought to dispose Guj blast items

Nagpur: The Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), which has its headquarters in the city, has received a call for help in disposing of the material seized at the firecracker godown at Deesa, where an explosion killed 21 people on Tuesday.

The Deesa incident and the subsequent request by the local police for help once again brings to fore the plight of PESO, which is dogged by lack of manpower. In Gujarat, PESO has a single office in Vadodara, manned by three officers. One is a joint chief controller, and two are deputy controllers of explosives, said a source here.

"We will only be able to provide basic guidelines on handling the materials, and the police will have to carry out the disposal process," said a source. PESO's help was also sought in last year's blast at a firecracker factory at Harda, Madhya Pradesh, a source said.

With its headquarters at Nagpur, PESO has regional offices in nine states. Only Gujarat and Assam don't have sub-offices below a regional office. There are six offices in Tamil Nadu, including one in Sivakasi, the firecracker capital of the country.

PESO has around 300 officers against a sanctioned strength of 450. Post-Covid, a study was conducted under the aegis of the National Productivity Council, and it was recommended that manpower be increased. The proposal remains pending with the govt, said a source. PESO needs 500 officers immediately, said a source.

PESO's mandate includes scrutiny and approval for sites, layout, and construction plans for over 20 types of facilities. This includes fireworks manufacturing units, storehouses, and even shops, says its website.

Set up during the colonial era in 1898, it was earlier called the department of explosives. Now re-christened as PESO, it remains the sole regulator of explosives and petroleum industry, apart from having an extended mandate.

Any storage facility handling more than 500kg of explosives has to obtain a licence from PESO. Those of lower capacity can get a permit from the respective district collectorates, said sources at the headquarters.

The unit at Deesa was operating without any permissions at all, said PESO sources here. If the owners had even approached the collectorate, they would have been diverted to PESO since more than 500kg was handled. PESO is too understaffed to gather intelligence, moreover, its mandate only begins once an establishment obtains a licence, said an official requesting anonymity.

PESO officials said the gunpowder used in making crackers contains charcoal, sodium nitrate, and sulphur. However, a number of unauthorized units also use potassium chlorate for additional sound. This is a banned item for crackers. Potassium chlorate is also used in bullets and is highly toxic. The use of potassium chlorate can lead to a higher impact, leading to casualties, a source said.