New Delhi: A team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), as well as personnel from the National Disaster Relief Force on Sunday arrived at the site of explosion outside the CRPF school in Prashant Vihar, in Rohini area of national capital, which was rocked by a loud explosion early this morning.
National Security Guard (NSG) commandoes were also present at the site to assist in a probe by Delhi Police. A forensic team has examined the site and collected samples.According to the Delhi police, no conclusive statement has been made yet on what caused the blast near the school and authorities, including the Special Cell, are investigating.
#FPReels | India: Blast Reported Outside CRPF School in Delhi
An explosion was reported outside a school in Delhi's Rohini area on the morning of October 20. The blast damaged the wall of the school, operated by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). There were no casualties… pic.twitter.com/phpmWNokwO
— Firstpost (@firstpost) October 20, 2024
Delhi Police PRO Sanjay Tyagi stated that a loud explosion was reported this morning from the area in Prashant Vihar. “The police team quickly reached the spot, where they detected a foul smell and found broken window panes and glass within the school premises. Senior officers, along with experts from the Forensic Department, Crime Team, and Special Cell, are conducting the investigation,” Tyagi said.
#WATCH | Delhi Blast | Delhi Police PRO Sanjay Tyagi says, "This morning, PS Prashant Vihar received information about a loud blast near CRPF School. The police team reached the spot immediately and found a foul smell. Window panes and glasses in the school premises were broken.… pic.twitter.com/ca674rROFi
— ANI (@ANI) October 20, 2024
The police official said, “The cause is being ascertained… It will not be right to give a conclusive statement till the investigation is completed.” The material used in the blast outside the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) school in Rohini, Delhi, resembles a crude bomb, but the details will be clear after full reports are received, according to sources at the Forensic Science Laboratory.
According to police sources, the blast was intended to send a message, as the suspect deliberately chose the school wall and morning hours to ensure no loss of life. “The manner of the blast on the wall side and the morning timing suggest the intention was only to send a message, not to cause significant damage,” they said.
Investigative agencies suspect that the white powder found at the site could be from a crude homemade bomb made with ammonium phosphate and other chemicals.
Experts from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and NSG collected samples from the site for analysis to determine the exact chemicals used.
Wires were also found at the scene, but it is unclear if they were present beforehand or connected to the incident. NSG officials found a battery and wire near the blast spot and are investigating whether these items were placed before the explosion.
The agencies will soon submit a report to the Home Ministry regarding the incident. According to police, the explosion’s loud sound was heard at around 7:30 am. A call was received at the police control room at 7:47 am, regarding the blast near the CRPF school in Rohini’s Sector 14.
“On this, the station house officer and his team reached the spot, where the school wall was found damaged. A foul smell was noticed at the site, and the windows of nearby shops and cars parked nearby were shattered. However, no one was injured in the incident,” said a senior police officer.
According to sources, the blast was deliberately carried out in the morning to avoid casualties, with the intention of sending only a “message or signal.”
An eyewitness at the scene told ANI, “We were sitting at home, then we heard a loud blast. At first, we did not understand what happened, thinking that a cylinder had burst. We then ran down and saw that there was a lot of yellow smoke everywhere, so we called up the police.”
#WATCH | Rohini, Delhi: Shashank, an eyewitness of the blast that occurred outside CRPF School in Prashant Vihar, says, "… The only possibilities which we think of are a cylinder blast or a building collapse… There was a big cloud of smoke here which stayed for a good 10… https://t.co/B4iZFv1gTu pic.twitter.com/OstKLlwABj
— ANI (@ANI) October 20, 2024
The eyewitness also described property damage. “All the glasses were broken. We heard such a loud explosion that we felt our building was shaking too. The lock at the gate near our parking is also broken due to the blast,” he said.
The agencies found white powder at the site, suspected to have been used in the crude bomb. However, the exact chemical composition will be confirmed after analysis by the FSL, CRPF, and NSG, said sources.
Officials at the scene told ANI that the odor immediately following the blast resembled ammonia and phosphate. Traces of a white powdery substance were found on the school wall and nearby objects.
In an earlier official statement, the Delhi Police said, “Today at 07:47 AM, a PCR call was received in which the caller informed that a blast with lots of noise took place near the CRPF school in Sector 14, Rohini. The SHO and staff reached the spot, where the school wall was found damaged with a foul smell. The glass of nearby shops and a car parked near the shop were also found to be damaged. Fortunately, no one was injured.”
CCTV Footage of the major blast which took place in Delhi’s Rohini at the #CRPF School pic.twitter.com/MHipajZdMN
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) October 20, 2024
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