A team of the National Security Guard (NSG) on Sunday visited the restaurant on Mall Road in Shimla, where a gas leak supposedly caused a blast, to further investigate the matter. Director General of Police Sanjay Kundu said a team from the National Bomb Data Centre of the NSG visited the site for the post-blast investigation to find out the real and exact cause of the explosion that took place on July 18 and ended up killing one person and injuring 13 others, reported news agency PTI.
The blast occurred on Tuesday (July 18) evening at Himachali Rasoi restaurant, which is known for serving Himachali cuisines. It is located in Middle Bazaar near the fire brigade office in the heart of the city. Initially, Police said the blast was apparently caused by a gas leak.
The place where the blast occurred was sensitive as it is near the Police Reporting Room. As the NSG specialises in this field, their services are being availed to determine the cause of the blast according to the standard operating procedure of the government, said the officer, as reported by PTI.
Earlier on July 19, DGP Kundu visited the blast site and said preliminary investigation and forensic examination had pointed out that the gas leak led to the blast. Going by the statement of the injured people, a gas leak from two LPG cylinders caused the blast. Notably, more casualties were averted as the place was closed for maintenance.
Shimla Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi also said people near the eatery had complained of a gas leak before the blast occurred. However, there are several suspicions of other causes for the blast due to the high intensity of the explosion that shattered the windows of several shops and houses in the vicinity. Even the sound of the explosion was heard miles away, as per PTI's report.
Amid this, BJP media in-charge Karan Nanda, along with other shopkeepers are demanding a high-level investigation into the matter. He also said they were confident that the NSG would find out the truth about the explosion.