Telangana PCB shuts Saraca Labs after chloroform leak kills two

The order directs the bulk-drug and intermediates manufacturer at Gaddapotharam village in Jinnaram mandal to stop all industrial activity immediately.

Hyderabad: The pharmaceutical unit where two workers died in a chloroform leak had no leak-detection alarms and no equipment to arrest vapour emissions, the Telangana Pollution Control Board (TGPCB) has found. The board ordered the Saraca Laboratories plant in Sangareddy district shut on Friday, October 23, without giving the company a hearing.

The findings are detailed in the board’s closure order, as reported by The Times of India. The order directs the bulk-drug and intermediates manufacturer at Gaddapotharam village in Jinnaram mandal to stop all industrial activity immediately. It also calls for the unit’s power supply to be disconnected, citing safety failures, consent violations and risks to public health and the environment.

Two workers dead, six more ill

Police identified the dead as Sudarshan Rao, 27, and Balaji, 44, both from Andhra Pradesh. They became unconscious after the leak and were declared dead at Narayana Hospital. Police said six other workers fell seriously ill. Police are investigating the cause of the leak and the safety arrangements at the plant.

The Telangana Human Rights Commission (TGHRC) has sought a report from the Sangareddy collector by November 26.

How the leak happened

According to the order, chloroform vapours escaped around 11.30 pm on Thursday, October 22, in Production Block No. 2. The leak occurred while a layer was being separated from a first-floor reactor into a ground-level receiver.

General manager Madhu and deputy general manager Yogeshwar Rao told inspectors that the vapours accumulated rapidly and spread. About 1,750 litres of chloroform separation layer were reportedly in the reactor. The order does not establish how much actually leaked. Patancheru deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Prabhakar informed the TGPCB’s RC Puram office of the incident.

What inspectors found

Inspectors found that the high-density polyethylene (HDPE) vent line and valve of the scrubber had broken and fallen. They also found spillages near the duct and a lingering smell of chloroform.

Volatile organic compound (VOC) levels reached 20 parts per million (ppm) at the point of the incident and 0.1 ppm outside the production block. The order does not identify these as chloroform-specific readings.

Apart from the missing leak alarms, the unit had no sub-cooler condenser followed by an activated charcoal bed, even though it had a double-stage scrubber.

Consent renewed despite earlier directions

The unit’s consent for operation had been auto-renewed in March 2026 and was valid until March 31, 2031. The order records complaint-related and non-compliance directions issued to the company between 2020 and August 2026.

It also refers to requests to the district collector for an inquiry into the deaths of buffaloes in earlier incidents, to assess the compensation industries should pay.

The board sought compliance with the closure within 24 hours and with the power disconnection within 48 hours. No report on implementation accompanies the order. The board warned that running the unit, including on generators, would invite prosecution.

The directions on disposal of wastewater and debris refer to a “fire accident”, although the board’s account of the incident establishes only a leak.