Hyderabad: IDL has announced a compensation of Rs 15 lakh as ex gratia payment to the next of kin of each of the employees who died in a major blast at the Hyderabad factory on Tuesday.

The company also said that it will pay Rs 2 lakh to those injured, in addition to meeting the full cost of treatment. In the case of deceased employees, IDL has announced its intention to provide employment to the next of the kin as a special case.

At least seven employees working in the detonating cord section died instantaneously in a powerful explosion that brought down an entire building structure around 3.30 pm on Tuesday. Another eight employees who were working in the shift duty suffered various degrees of injuries.

The plant has been manufacturing explosives and detonators for the last 40 years and this is the first accident of this kind.