MULTAN, July 23: Twenty-four workers of the Pak-Arab Fertilizer Factory fell unconscious reportedly because of ammonia leak at the plant on Friday night.

It is learnt that the management had just restarted the plant after keeping it shut for almost three weeks for maintenance and repair.

Three of the unconscious workers brought to the Nishter Hospital emergency here and people accompanying their said that the accident took place due to ammonia gas leak from a pipe.

They said the factory had remained closed for almost three weeks for maintenance and repair but the highly vulnerable ammonia gas pipes did not get attention of the management.

Several attempts to get the version of the factory's management till late in the night formed unsuccessful with the telephone operator saying that the managing director, general manager (technical) and other senior officials were busy in restarting the plant.

Informed sources said that this was the second ammonia leak on Friday. They said a worker, Sultan Ahmed, had to be hospitalized when the plant was run on trial in the morning.

District Officer (environment) Khalid Mehmood told this correspondent that he had issued a notice to the management of the fertilizer unit under section 142 of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance to explain its position about the incident in which Sultan Ahmed had fallen unconscious.

He said the district environment protection department had already brought the matter to the notice of the provincial government after receiving several complaints that the factory was causing irreversible damage to environment and sought a trial in the environment tribunal.