Bokaro, Jan. 7: A three-member team of Chas administration, investigating reports of intermittent gas leaks at some villages of Chandankyari block, has concluded that blasting operations carried out by a nearby steel plant to excavate coal may have led to the phenomenon.

Although Electrosteel Steels Ltd (ESL) has claimed its operations had the go-ahead from Director General of Mines Safety (DGMS), the administration team, comprising Chas (Bokaro) SDO S. N Ram, DSP Manish Toppo and district mining officer Ajit Kumar submitted its report to Bokaro deputy commissioner Uma Shankar Singh today, claiming that the highly inflammable coal-bedded methane (CBM) leak was because of the use of explosives on loose soil.

Over the last few days, residents of Rohnitand, Tilatand, Fatehpur, Silphor, Telgaria and Parbatpur, all villages in the Chandankyari block, some 30 km from Bokaro, have been complaining of a gas leak.

This prompted circle officer Vandana Sejwalkar to visit Telgaria on Monday. It was after her report to the Chas SDO that he took a team to the sites yesterday.

SDO Ram said it was indeed an extremely serious matter. 'Gas is being released due to heavy blasting being done by ESL for excavation of coal. I have submitted our inquiry report and sought further directives from the DC,' he told The Telegraph.

Rohit Singh, the chief of communications of Electro Steel Casting Ltd (ESCL), ESL's parent company, said excavation of coal was being carried out as per guidelines of DGMS, which conducts regular inspections of sites and then gives the go-ahead for controlled blasts.

'We are doing no wrong and working as per rules and regulations. We are not to be blamed,' he claimed.

The affected villages are within a kilometre radius of the Parbatpur coal block allotted to ESL, which conducts blasting operations to mine coal. The region is a storehouse of CBM gas, used primarily as low cost and low pollution fuel.

The problem of gas leak in the region has been reported on several occasions before, starting from 2009 to as recently as 2012. During these times, the district administration had to stop ESL's blasting operations.

The company was allowed to go ahead only after DGMS officials inspected the leaks and gave the green light. During one such inspection, an ONGC inspector, Tapan Datta, had said that these were low intensity leaks, barley 3 per cent, and, therefore, not risky.

Villagers Bhim Rajwar, Devi Lal Mahto, Lakhan Khawas, Lalbau Rajwar of Telgaria, Rohnitand and Prabatpur vouch for the gas leaks and occasional fires and blamed the steel plant for their problems.

Chandankyari MLA Amar Boury also blamed ESL, alleging that the 'heavy blasting' caused the release of inflammable gas.

'The district administration must take measures immediately to check the release of gas. Otherwise, we will launch an agitation,' he said.