The company's fireworks license had been suspended only days earlier for violation of worker safety rules.
[4] With the Hindu festival of Diwali only weeks away, fireworks producers were reportedly under pressure to maintain high production levels.
[3] Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization (PESO), Government of India started investigation on the Explosion occurred on 05th September 2012, at 11.30 hrs at the Fire Works Factory premises of M/s Om Sakthi Fire Works Industries located at Vadi Village, Sivakasi Union and Taluk, Virudhunagar District, Tamilnadu covered under licence No.E/HQ/TN/20/1065(E25271) in Form LE-1 of Indian Explosives Rules 2008.
Keeping of excess quantity of black and colour pellets, in this shed significantly contributed to the enormity of the power of explosion which instantly killed the people around.
15 major violations of Explosives Rules 2008 was reported in the accident investigation report submitted by R.Venugopal.^10^ The licence was cancelled by the Chief Controller of Explosives, Nagpur Immediately after the incident, authorities began enforcing existing regulations, conducting raids and inspections, forcing some factories to close and cancelling several licences and as a consequence, 150 fireworks production units had been closed.
[6] The following day (7 September), Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa Jayaram announced a "magisterial probe" to determine how the factory was allowed to continue even after its licence had been suspended.