Piped Natural Gas Smell Triggers Panic In Noida

Panic triggered around 7pm when locals in sectors 137 and 93 started sharing messages on WhatsApp about the foul smell, even as several called up the officials of the police

Piped Natural Gas Smell Triggers Panic In Noida (File Image)

New Delhi: Suspected leakage of cooking gas from several residential sectors of Noida Thursday evening triggered panic in parts of the city adjoining the national capital.

However, Indraprastha Gas Limited, the supplier of Piped Natural Gas (PNG) in the area, said its officials inspected the gas pipeline network and there was no leakage in its network.

Panic triggered around 7pm when locals in sectors 137 and 93 started sharing messages on WhatsApp about the foul smell, even as several called up the officials of the police, the Noida Authority and the district administration to confirm the situation.

Internal messages in some housing societies also cautioned residents against using the cooking gas till normalcy in the PNG pipeline was confirmed, according to locals.

"The alarm towards the smell was raised by the residents of housing societies in Sector 137 and the local police was alerted around 7 PM after which the gas pipeline was stopped as precautionary measure," Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Noida) Ranvijay Singh said.

The local police was out on the ground, even as the exact source of the smell was yet to be located, the officer said.

Several people in the meantime took to social media to raise the matter with the IGL, which assured them that their network was working fine.

"Our teams are in the field and have checked the pipeline network in a few sectors of NOIDA where smell has been reported. There is no leakage in PNG network of IGL & no disruption in PNG supply," IGL tweeted.

Noida Federation of Apartment Owners Associations (NOFAA) president Rajiva Singh told PTI, "I have been getting calls and messages from people in Sector 128, 137 and 93, among others about the foul smell since late evening."

PNG is an odourless gas, but ethyl mercaptan is added to it as it provides easy detection by the users in case of a leakage. Experts suggest switching off electrical appliances and cooking stoves immediately in case of a gas leakage.

There was no official response from the district administration and the Noida Authority till the time this report was filed.