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Giaspura tragedy:Fact-finding committee holds review meeting ahead of deadline
The decision was taken in a meeting behind closed doors at a private hospital near Sherpur Chowk in which all the members and officials of the municipal corporation, Punjab Pollution Control Board were present
The eight-member fact-finding committee formed by the National Green Tribunal to investigate the reason behind the death of 11 people, including three children, in Giaspura convened a meeting on Friday to review the findings of the report before submitting it on June 30.
The meeting was held behind closed doors at a private hospital near Sherpur Chowk in which all the members and officials of the municipal corporation, Punjab Pollution Control Board were present.
The observations made during the field visit, witness statements, and opinions of experts were discussed during the meeting, according to officials privy to the development.
The reports of the samples collected from the spot were also reviewed, the officials said, adding that the results of all the samples have been compiled except the visceral report regarding the cause of the death, which is pending.
Representatives of different government departments also presented their versions before the committee at the meeting which went on for around two hours. The team will conduct a meeting again before June 30 before submitting the report.
On April 30, as many as 11 members of three families residing on Giaspura Road died after allegedly inhaling toxic gas.
The NGT team had conducted its first field visit on May 8, eight days after
the incident. The committee members had met the survivors and physically inspected the spot to get a first-hand idea of what actually transpired. The team had checked the sewage connections, manholes and sewage pipes around the site of the tragedy.
After taking suo moto cognizance of the incident which allegedly occurred due to a gas leak, the NGT on May 2 had ordered a compensation of ₹20 lakh each to the heirs of victims and had formed a joint committee comprising Punjab Pollution Control Board chairman Adrash Pal Vig, who is heading the committee; Gurnam Singh, regional director (north), Central Pollution Control Board, Chandigarh; Shailendra Pratap Singh from CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow; Dr Lakshmi from PGIMER, Chandigarh; Uttam Chand from National Disaster Response Force (NDRF); deputy commissioner Surabhi Malik; MC commissioner Shena Aggarwal; PPCB member secretary GS Majithia.
After the incident, three separate probes, including one by the the fact-finding committee, were initiated. A magisterial-level inquiry was ordered by the deputy commissioner while a five-member Special Investigating Team (SIT) was formed by police to probe the case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder (section 304 the IPC) registered against the unidentified accused.