Petrol Pump Blast: Police Gather Vital Clues From CCTV Footage

Bhubaneswar: Three days after a massive blast in an underground CNG chamber, the Commissionerate Police have gathered vital clues from the CCTV footage.

From the CCTV footage, police have found that the fire broke out when two persons Simanchal Parida (an IOCL technician) and Bharadwaj Harshvarshan (who is undergoing treatment at the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack), a staffer of the petrol pump, were talking on their mobile phones while the LPG was transferred from a gas tanker to the underground chamber. The duo was supervising the transfer process.

Police have sent the two mobile phones of these two supervisors to check the call records to verify whether they had received the call when the incident took place. Apart from this, the police will get the details after the interrogation of Bharadwaj.

Police are also investigating into the track record of the agency which was given permission to inspect the underground chamber.

Meanwhile, police have sent several flesh parts found from the spot to the Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) Department of Capital Hospital to ascertain whether they belong to the human or any animal. After the Department submits its report, the investigating officers will seek the permission of the court for the DNA test to the State Forensic Science Laboratory (SFSL).

Police also said that as Simanchal Parida has gone missing, the DNA profiling of the flesh parts will be done after taking the samples of his family members. If the DNA profiling is matched with the DNA of Simalchal and the remaining flesh parts do not match with his DNA, it will be construed that more than one person died in the blast.

While the IOCL has begun the process to seal the petrol pump, police have vacated the machinery from the pollution testing centre, the tyre and tube repairing shop, and the snacks and beverage items from a shop inside the petrol pump premises and handed them over to their respective owners.

Also Read: Commissionerate Police To Probe Filling Station Blast In Bhubaneswar