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25 fall sick in toxic gas leak

Angry villagers attack Fatullah factory

OUR CORRESPONDENT, N'ganj
At least 25 people have fallen sick after inhaling toxic fumes emitted from a newly built fertiliser factory in Maddhya Dharmaganj of Fatullah in last two days.
Locals enraged at the emission of toxic substances stormed the factory yesterday morning leaving some 20 people including a Chinese engineer injured.
The factory, which is situated in Chatlarpur area, shut down following a directive from the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of the district yesterday. Police and Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) men were deployed in the area to defuse the tension. Hossain Chemical Complex started emitting gases immediately after it went into a test operation at midnight Thursday. Many people including women and children got sick the same night from breathing the polluted air, said former Union Parishad member of Enayetnagar Abdur Rouf Shukkur.
"Many of the villagers' abdomen were distended with gas while red spots appeared on their skin," Shukkur said.
A number of goats died while many other livestock fell sick shortly after inhaling the poisonous substance. Besides, leaves of the trees have turned reddish, he added.
The locals on Friday morning rushed to the factory and informed the authorities of the toxic fumes. They pleaded with them to shut it down but to no avail.
General Manager of the factory Jamaluddin Biswas said some 500 locals broke into the factory and damaged a microbus, motor cycle, 20 computers, and documents of the factory yesterday morning.
Besides, they rampaged through the rooms that house the Chinese engineers. They broke windowpanes and furniture there. The situation came under control after police had intervened.
Jamaluddin said, "Emission of some gases for two/three days after getting in operation is quite natural, and it does no harms to the public health."
The factory has the approval of the government's environment department and it has professional and experienced engineers to work for it, he said. He alleged that some quarters are trying to mislead the locals with wrong information.
Some of the chemists of the factory said a burner used to produce sulphuric acid got blocked on Friday evening releasing toxic gases.
"However the more threatening was the attack by the locals. The boiler could have burst had the police not controlled the situation," said one of them requesting anonymity.
The Chinese engineers said they feel insecure in the face of widespread agitation. Additional Police Superin-tendent Ahsan Habib Palash said the locals did not inform the police of the emission. The factory authorities did not call them to deal with the demonstration against the factory either.
DC SM Harunar Rashid on visiting the site yesterday noon said he will soon inform the environment department of the prevailing situation at the factory.