Liquid oozing from fissures in earth

A few hours later, another villager noticed a similar but larger spill on the Shelwa river bed, drawing a huge crowd at the place.

“It was stinking and it looked like lava coming out from a volcano. We ran from the place in fear, only to find liquids flowing out of several other places in the village,” said villager Rajni Darbar. Some anxious villagers even informed the local police and, subsequently, a police team visited the spot. But nothing has been done to assure scared villagers who are fleeing the place.

While state government officials are yet to visit the place, local officers of the PWD fear the spill could have a corroding effect on a concrete bridge constructed over river Shelwa on state highway no. — 4 connecting Bhavnagar and Ahmedabad.

Though the main source of spills is on the river bed, fields which developed fissures have also been affected. A team of local PWD officials visited the place on Tuesday and assured villagers that a specimen of the liquid would be send for testing to the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) and other such organisations.

However, even 24 hours after their visit, samples have not been collected for examination. The main source of spills on the Shelwa river bed is still active and liquids are continuing to flow out.