A mild intensity explosion was reported near a sweet shop in north west Delhi’s Prashant Vihar area on Thursday, causing minor injuries to a man and triggering panic among people.
This is the second such incident in the area in less than a month after a blast occurred near a CRPF school on October 20. The blast had ripped off the wall of the school.
According to Additional Commissioner of Police Sanjay Tyagi, a distress call was received at 11.47 am regarding the blast at Prashant Vihar. Upon receiving the call, the local police along with the forensic group, crime branch, fire tenders and ambulances reached the spot at PVR Road, he said.
“It was found that a very mild intensity explosion occurred near the wall of a small park. One individual suffered minor abrasion. He was instantly taken to the Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital from where he was immediately discharged after receiving first aid and a legal action is being taken accordingly,” the PRO said.
The premises near the blast site were cordoned off immediately after a bomb detection team, the dog squad, police and Delhi Fire Services reached the spot.
A white power was recovered from the spot, but a probe is underway to ascertain the exact cause of the explosion.
A police official said the explosive material was dumped in the garbage area and in comparison to the earlier blast near the CRPF school, the quantity of explosive material was less.
The teams are also analyzing CCTV footage of the nearby areas in order to get clues about the suspect who placed the explosive or triggered the blast, he added.
A video showing a cloud of smoke around the multiplex also emerged on social media following the incident.
Meanwhile during the day, National Security Guard (NSG) commandos with a dog unit, FSL team and other expert units carry out further investigation at the site of explosion and a counter of the bomb disposal unit has also been set up at the spot.
According to the police sources, the Thursday morning explosion is similar to the blast that occurred outside the CRPF School’s boundary wall in Prashant Vihar last month on October 20.
“A similar kind of thick smoke was seen in the air in that explosion too and it was again recovered from the spot,” they said.
Following a preliminary investigation, Delhi Police have registered an FIR under relevant sections of defacement of public property Act and Indian Explosive Act.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in the national capital.
On the borders connecting Delhi with states of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana a thorough scrutiny of vehicles entering the capital is going on.
Already an additional police deployment of force is there in the city to enforce GRAP 4 restrictions, in addition to this, now we are carrying out more intensive checking of vehicles, said a police official.
Moreover, inside the city too, the area having high footfall such as markets, railway stations and bus stations, the cops are carrying out foot patrol to ensure security of travelers as well as to the shoppers.
In addition to this, surprise checking of vehicles playing on the roads within the city is also being carried out.
Additionally, the bomb disposal units are sanitizing the heavy footfall and famous places in the capital. Local police teams are monitoring the areas such as Sarojni Nagar, Kamala Nagar, Janpath market and Palika Bazar among others with the help of CCTV cameras.
Meanwhile, the cops have cornered off the blast site in Prashant Vihar area and a strict checking of people commuting in the whole district of North West Delhi is going on.