Nine persons were on Tuesday, 7th March, injured in a blast in the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train near Jabdi station in Shajapur district of Madhya Pradesh. Two of them are seriously injured and taken to nearby hospital. According to Railway PRO, Indore, Jitendra Kumar, the blast occurred in a general coach at around 9.30 a.m. in the morning when it was on its way from Bhopal to Ujjain. He also added that the injured were admitted to a hospital in Kalapipal town of Shajapur district. All the passengers of the general coach rushed out to save themselves, as smoke engulfed the coach, causing panic among the passengers. The window glass panes in the coach have damaged also because of the blast, which occurred when the train was about to reach Jabdi Station. After the blast, the train came to a halt.
The 2 seriously injured people were referred to a private hospital in Bhopal. The others were undergoing treatment at a government hospital in Kalapipal town, which is close to the site of the accident and located around 80 km from Bhopal. The blast took place in an ordinary second-class coach, which is the second last coach of the train. Two coaches were separated from the train and damaged due to the occurrence of the blast, which later left for its onward journey. State civil police, railway police, forensic police, and the railway protection force have all reached the spot, which has been cordoned off.
According to GRP Indore SP Krishnaveni Desavatu, a bomb disposal squad has reached the accident site crossing the 80 km distance from Bhopal and is trying to ascertain the cause of the blast and the nature of the blast.
The ceiling of the coach found damaged in the blast but they have not found any explosive or blasting/ detonating device on the site. However, a suitcase was found in that coach and the squad is examining it to find out any cause. It could also be a cell phone having exploded inside the train. The senior railway officers, intelligence officials, and the anti-terrorism squad also have left the site of the blast to ascertain the cause.
The Madhya Pradesh (MP) government has announced Rs 50,000 compensation for the critically injured and Rs 25,000 for the injured persons. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan told that personally, he is observing the situation. He told that the Superintendent of Police (SP) and the District Collector (DC) are at the spot for the detail observation.
Additional Director General of Police (DGP), Ujjain, Madhu Kumar and senior officials of Ratlam railway division have rushed to the accident site to observe the details. According to them, the exact cause of the blast will be known after details examination of the affected coach.
They added,“The glass of the windows in those general coaches were shattered in the blast, which occurred when it was about to reach Jabdi station”. “We are trying to find out the cause and those persons involved in hatching the plot of accident”, they added.
