Nineteen students from a school in Delhi have been hospitalized after a gas leak incident, with the source of the leak currently under investigation. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) stated that the gas leak occurred near the railway tracks close to the school. However, the railways have refuted this claim, stating that they have not received any reports of a gas leak and that their wagons do not transport any toxic gases.
The affected students were admitted to RML Hospital and Acharya Bhikshuk Hospital, with all nine students at Acharya Bhikshuk Hospital already being discharged. Of the 19 students at RML Hospital, 15 arrived by 11:28 am, with four additional students arriving after 3 pm. The MCD announced that all students admitted before 11:28 am, except one with a pre-existing gastric problem, will be discharged. The remaining students will be kept under observation, and a teacher will stay overnight to care for them.
Some parents of the affected children have alleged that the school authorities did not inform them of the incident. The students who became ill reported experiencing stomach aches and difficulty breathing due to a foul smell. The police received a call about the sick students and vomiting at Nigam Pratibha Vidyalaya in Inderpuri. Representative Vichitra Veer confirmed that the initial assessment suggested a foul smell in some classrooms had caused the sickness. All classrooms in the school have been vacated as a precautionary measure, and further investigations are being conducted to identify the source of the smell.
Following the incident, officials from the civic health department visited the hospitals and the school, and the MCD’s education department is also involved in the investigation. A preliminary examination by doctors has ruled out food poisoning as the cause of the illness. The MCD has directed officials to conduct a thorough probe to determine the cause and source of the gas leak.
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva visited the students at RML Hospital and called for an investigation by the civic body. However, he accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of misleading the families by claiming it was a gas leak. In 2017, over 450 girl students were affected by a chemical leak from the Tughlakabad container depot.
Efforts are underway to rehabilitate the affected students and ensure their safe return home. The Delhi Crime’s Forensic team is expected to submit a report identifying the exact cause of the gas leak. Both the MCD and the railways are committed to investigating the incident and providing clarity on its origins.
