11 dead, several injured from gas leak in Ludhiana factory

Eleven people were killed and several others were hospitalised after an incident of gas leak in a factory in the Giaspura area in Punjab district on Sunday (April 30), police said.

Four more people, who were taken ill, are undergoing treatment at a hospital, they added. The source of the leakage and the type of the gas are yet to be ascertained, police said, adding that the area has been sealed, while a fire brigade and an ambulance have been deployed there.

Rescue operations

A 50-member team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also reached the site to help evacuate the people and for rescue operations. Police said the casualties comprise five females and six males. Two boys aged 10 and 13 are among the 11 who died in the incident, they said.

The police have cordoned off the area.

A district administration official said a team of NDRF, which has reached here, will ascertain the source and the type of gas. As it was a thickly-populated area, the immediate priority was to evacuate people from the place, the official further said.

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Mann promises help

Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann tweeted and said the incident was very  painful and added that all possible help is being provided. “The incident of gas leak in Giaspura area of Ludhiana is very painful. Teams of police, district administration and NDRF are present on the spot. Every possible help is being provided..,” Mann said in a tweet in Punjabi.en