A fire on Wednesday gutted a large number of PVC pipes belonging to L&T, intended for Amaravati's infrastructure projects, at a storage site in Velagapudi. Fire services responded with six tenders to control the blaze, which officials attribute to possible negligence. Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha has ordered an inquiry to investigate if the incident was accidental or a conspiracy.
On Wednesday, a fire broke out at the seed access road in Velagapudi, where plastic pipes manufactured by L&T were stored for use in Amaravati's capital infrastructure works. The blaze destroyed a significant quantity of these six-year-old PVC pipes.
Six fire tenders were dispatched to the scene and eventually doused the flames. Director General of A.P. State Disaster Response and Fire Services, P. Venkata Ramana, stated that the fire was allegedly sparked by a burning cigarette butt or the ignition of nearby dry grass. He noted that the PVC material caused the fire to spread rapidly and burn intensely, prolonging efforts to extinguish it. Ramana suggested negligence as a contributing factor, given the age of the pipes.
Amaravati Development Corporation Limited CMD D. Lakshmiparthasarathy Bhasker, along with other officials, inspected the site following the incident.
In response, Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha directed an inquiry to determine whether the fire was an accident or the result of a conspiracy. This probe aims to clarify the circumstances surrounding the damage to materials crucial for the region's development.