5 taken to hospital after complaining of itching in eyes allegedly due to gas leakage in Delhi

Five people were taken to the hospital after they complained of itching in their eyes allegedly caused by leakage of gas at Ekta Vihar in southwest Delhi's RK Puram area, police said on Thursday.

They said all the people, who are residents of a slum cluster in RK Puram area, are stated to be safe, they said.

Police said an investigation is underway to ascertain if the people were affected due to exposure to any gas because preliminary enquiry revealed that no gas cylinder was on fire and no fumes were found emanating from anywhere in the area.

According to police, at 9:15 pm on Wednesday they received information that there was leakage of gas in Ekta Vihar area and SHO of RK Puram police station, along with his staff and investigation officer, reached the spot immediately.

Two fire tenders and as many ambulances also reached the spot along with the DDMA team after they were informed about the call, police said.

Atul Garg, Director of the Delhi Fire Service, said, "On Wednesday, we were informed about the incident at 9.20 pm and accordingly fire tenders were sent. It was reported that some gas leaked but the source of the leakage could not be traced. No casualty was reported."

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Gaurav Sharma said "Five people who complained about itching in their eyes were sent to Safdarjung Hospital. All are safe and normal."

"During initial enquiry, no fire was found in any gas cylinder and no fumes were seen emerging from any place in the area. The situation remained normal due to the timely action of police and further necessary action is being taken," he added.

An FIR has been registered against unknown people under section 336 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code, police said, adding further investigation is underway.