1 dead, many fall ill after gas leak incident in eastern India

NEW DELHI, June 25 (Xinhua) -- At least one person died and dozens fell ill after a poisonous gas leaked in an industrial area in India's eastern state of Bihar on the weekend, local police confirmed on Sunday.

Civil Surgeon of a local government hospital Shyam Nandan Prasad was quoted as saying that around 30 to 35 injured are undergoing treatment at Hajipur Sadar Hospital after a poisonous gas leaked from an ammonium cylinder in a fresh dairy in Vaishali district, noting that the patients are in stable conditions.

Meanwhile, the local fire department claimed that the situation was under control.

"We got information that there was an incident of gas leakage from an ammonium cylinder in Raj Fresh Dairy. Several fire tenders have reached the spot to control the situation," said Ashok Kumar, a senior officer of the local fire department.

An investigation is underway, said Kumar.