Nagpur: A chilling extortion threat targeting one of India’s most sensitive industrial installations has raised serious questions over security preparedness and intelligence monitoring on the outskirts of Nagpur. The Chairman of Solar Group, a key manufacturer of explosives for the mining, infrastructure and defence sectors, received a WhatsApp threat demanding Rs 2 crore, with a blunt warning that the company’s unit would be blown up if the demand was not met.
The message was sent on Monday to Solar Group Chairman Satyanarayan Nuwal from an unknown mobile number, spelling out a crude extortion plan while brazenly instructing the recipient not to approach the police. The sender claimed the cash was to be handed over to two villagers living near the company’s unit, who would then pass it on to the extortionist.
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The gravity of the threat, aimed at a high-risk explosives facility, triggered swift action from security agencies. A joint team of Nagpur Rural Police, the local Crime Branch and other security agencies moved in to trace the origin of the message. The mobile number was tracked to Gajanan Dhurve, who claimed that his handset had been lost or stolen days earlier and was being misused by an unknown person. Police have taken him into custody as investigations intensify.
The two villagers named in the message were also summoned and questioned at length. Both denied any role in the extortion attempt, maintaining that they were being falsely implicated. Police officials said verification of their claims is underway.
A senior officer confirmed that a First Information Report is being registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for criminal intimidation and extortion. “Given the nature of the facility involved, this is not being treated as a routine threat,” the officer said, adding that call detail records, technical data and message routing are being thoroughly analysed.
Investigators are probing multiple angles, including whether the threat was a reckless prank, a deliberate act of intimidation, or rooted in personal or local disputes. Police sources pointed out that the region has seen rapid industrialisation following the establishment of the ammunition unit, triggering lingering resentment over land acquisition, compensation and displacement issues among sections of the local population.
What has further deepened concerns is the timing of the threat. The incident comes barely weeks after a security breach in December 2025, when an unidentified drone was spotted hovering over the company’s airstrip on the Nagpur–Amravati road. That incident prompted alerts to police, intelligence agencies and the Anti-Terrorism Squad, leading to heightened security at the site. Despite an FIR, the drone operator remains unidentified, an unresolved lapse that now looms large.
Security experts warn that repeated incidents, first aerial surveillance and now a bomb threat, underline the vulnerability of high-risk industrial zones and the urgent need for tighter monitoring and intelligence coordination. While the Solar Group has not issued an official statement, officials have insisted that all necessary precautions are in place.
Police, meanwhile, say there will be no room for complacency. “Whether this turns out to be mischief or something more sinister, a threat to an explosives facility cannot be taken lightly,” a senior officer said. “Every possibility is on the table.”
