11 die after inhaling toxic gas in Ludhiana, probe ordered to detect source

#Ludhianagasleak | At least eleven people died and several others became critically ill Sunday after inhaling poisonous gas at Ludhiana’s Giaspura, a thickly populated area.

Rescue operations are underway.

Read: https://t.co/SYRME9uTCn pic.twitter.com/CwQSK9aRQC

— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) April 30, 2023

“In the air quality sensors used by the NDRF team, high levels of hydrogen sulphide gas was detected and it is ascertained that this gas might have led to the tragic incident,” said a statement from the Ludhiana district administration.

It said a magisterial inquiry has been ordered. Meanwhile, Ludhiana police registered an FIR under the section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of IPC at Sahnewal police station for “dumping industry into sewage illegally which led to chemical reaction and production of toxic gas…”

Autopsy reports suggested that the deaths were due to “inhalation poisoning”.

“The cause of death has come out as inhalation poisoning but the type of poison will be clear only after viscera examination. Hydrogen sulphide is so toxic that even one breath of it taken inside can kill. Probably some acidic waste was thrown into sewer which reacted with methane, carbon monoxide and other sewage gases to produce hydrogen sulphide,” said Dr Charan Kamal, forensic expert at Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, where the postmortem examination of 10 of the dead was conducted.

ਲੁਧਿਆਣਾ ਦੇ ਗਿਆਸਪੁਰਾ ਇਲਾਕੇ ਵਿੱਚ ਫ਼ੈਕਟਰੀ ਦੀ ਗੈਸ ਲੀਕ ਦੀ ਘਟਨਾ ਬੇਹੱਦ ਦੁੱਖਦਾਇਕ ਹੈ..ਪੁਲਿਸ, ਪੑਸ਼ਾਸਨ ਅਤੇ NDRF ਟੀਮਾਂ ਮੌਕੇ ‘ਤੇ ਮੌਜੂਦ ਹਨ ..ਹਰ ਸੰਭਵ ਮਦਦ ਪਹੁੰਚਾਈ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ..ਬਾਕੀ ਵੇਰਵੇ ਜਲਦੀ..

— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) April 30, 2023

Expressing similar suspicions, Deputy Commissioner Surabhi Malik said, “It is suspected that some industrial waste or chemical was dumped into the sewage, which reacted with methane and led to production of hydrogen sulphide, which has been detected in the NDRF air censors.”

“Those who died did not have any respiratory symptoms… Hydrogen sulphide led to the deaths due to neurotoxicity but we are yet to know what was dumped in the sewage and by whom. Samples collected from the manhole have been handed over to Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) for testing,” she said.

Malik said there is no factory in the block where the incident happened “but there are several factories and industries spread across Giaspura”.

The incident took place on Sua Road near Eastman Chowk in a block which has several establishments, including a grocery shop, a Verka milk booth, a clinic and residences.

Of the 11 dead, six were male and five female, including two children aged 10 and 13.

The dead included Dr Kavilash (40), who ran a clinic in the area, his wife Varsha (35) and three children – Kalpana (16), Abhay (13) and Aryan (10). The family hailed from Bihar but had been settled in Punjab for the past three decades.

Sourav Goyal (35), who ran a grocery store in the affected block, died along with his wife Preety (31) and mother Kamlesh Goyal (60). Sourav’s eight-month-old son survived while his brother Gaurav (50) is undergoing treatment at Civil Hospital. The family hailed from Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh but were settled in Ludhiana for the past two decades. A guest of the Goyals from Uttar Pradesh, Amit Gupta (25), was also among the dead.

The residences of both these families are located near their respective clinic and shop.

Another couple — Navneet Kumar (39) and his wife Neetu Devi (37) – who lived in the area also died. Navneet’s brother Nitin Kumar (40) was hospitalised. Their parents are currently in Patna, but both brothers have been living in Ludhiana for around 20 years. Naveen worked as an accountant at a firm.

In separate posts on Twitter, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann expressed grief over the deaths. The district administration announced Rs 2 lakh compensation each for the family of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each for those hospitalised. In the evening, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for families of those from the state who died in the incident.

Punjab Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh, who visited those taken ill, said that being a doctor himself, he “too was surprised” and “curious to know which kind of gas it was that so many people died”.

“The gas from sewage cannot kill so many people who were on the surface (not inside the sewage). It is being probed… it was so toxic that all 11 died instantly. The district administration and police are probing,” he said.

Ludhiana Police Commissioner Mandeep Singh Sidhu said several lives were saved as the police promptly evacuated the area. “We used drones to check if any person was lying unconscious on terraces or rooftops but none was found. All who fell unconscious were evacuated,” said Sidhu.

Deputy Commissioner Malik said: “The entire area has been evacuated but…, we request people to take precautions and stay away from the area till further update.”

“Though most of the gas has diluted, Municipal Corporation, PPCB and NDRF teams are checking the extent of its spread,” she said.

According to the FIR, registered on the complaint of Inspector Inderjit Singh, SHO of Sahnewal police station, information was received in the morning about foul smell in the area and some persons falling sick. They were lying on the ground and struggling for life, said the FIR.

It said that “being an industrial area, some people here usually get rid of industrial waste by dumping it in sewage lines illegally”.

“It was suspected that some unknown persons dumped industrial waste into sewage which led to a chemical reaction and toxic gas was produced which leaked from a broken manhole and affected people in houses and shops located 30-40 yards away,” the FIR said.

In a similar incident in June 2015, five people were killed and at least 100 others fell ill after ammonia gas leaked from a tanker in Doraha town of Ludhiana district.