After a poisonous gas leak on Friday, November 18, in the Science lab at the Kasturba Gandhi College in Secunderabad, more than 40 students fell sick. With symptoms including a sore throat, shortness of breath, vomiting and dizziness, the female students were sent to Geetha Nursing Home yesterday evening.
The incident happened around 2:30 pm. Some students felt lightheaded when the gas started leaking from the junior college side. When fire trucks arrived, they took charge of the situation. It is thought that using too many chemicals in the lab while conducting a science experiment, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
A source at Geetha Nursing Home, where the sick female students were taken, said, "As many as 41 students were admitted into the hospital in the afternoon. Among them, five students are still undergoing treatment." The five girls who are still receiving treatments are being given IV fluids, the source added. All of the other students are in good health.
According to Superintendent Dr Raja Rao, two Commerce, Economics and Civics (CEC) students were admitted to the Gandhi Hospital. Despite being on the same floor as the gas, they were not in direct contact with it. The students were examined and discharged within a few hours, added Dr Rao, stated The New Indian Express report.
The authorities at the college informed that, "The gas immersion has nothing to do with the Science lab. There was no Science experiment going on at the time of the incident," and insisted that the college does not have any stock of any harmful chemicals and the foul smell was coming from the garbage at the boundary wall of the college as reported by The New Indian Express.
While the reason for the gas leak is still being investigated, SI B Soumya, Marredpally Police Station, told The New Indian Express, "We are not sure about the reason. It could be because of the dump yard near the college campus as some of them are claiming. We are not sure whether there was a chemical leak from the college science lab either."
Parents of the students who were hospitalised are blaming the college authorities for negligence. The college administration declared a holiday on Saturday, November 19, following the incident, as reported by The New Indian Express.
