More radioactive material found,source being traced

Eight more pieces were found in the godown,located 500 metres away from the shop,said Sharad Aggarwal,Deputy Commissioner of Police (West). The material was segregated and taken to Narora for inspection. The piece of radioactive material found on Thursday was the size of a wristwatch,he said.

A case of negligence has been registered at the Mayapuri police station against unidentified persons.

The shop owner,Deepak Jain,is being treated for radiation exposure at the Apollo Hospital. The hospital authorities had informed the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB),who,in turn,had informed the Delhi Police.

“Jain had bought the material about 20 days ago,” said a police officer. “Owing to exposure to the material,his hands had turned black,he lost hair and developed patches on his body. As his condition worsened,he approached local clinics and went to the Apollo on April 4.”

Jain’s staff were affected as well. Ram Jivan (30) Ram Kalap (30) Rajinder (30) and Gorakh (21) were admitted in the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital a few days ago.

Cobalt-60 is used for various purposes,including radiology,cancer treatment and food preservation.

“The material could have reached the junk market in many ways,” the police officer said. “Plenty of scrap is brought here daily and it is difficult to check each and every item. It is suspected that the material came from Faridabad but nothing is confirmed yet. Efforts are on to trace its source.”

Owners of neighbouring shops are in the dark about the source of the material. Neeraj Jain,a shop owner,said: “Some of us bring the material from the government,others through private sources. It is difficult to tell where this came from.” Experts from AERB said the material came from some equipment used for the treatment of cancer.