Bomb blast in train kills 33 in Punjab

Thirtythree people were killed and 67 injured, 13 of them seriously, when a powerful bomb blast ripped apart a bogie of a pasenger train at Lehra Khana railway station in Bhatinda district of punjab on Tuesday afternoon.

Official sources said in Chandigarh on Tuesday evening that while 22 persons died on the spot, 11 seriously wounded passengers later succumbed to injuries in different hospitals in the district.

The sources said that the blast occurred in the Ambala-bound passenger train with 336 person aboard minutes after it arrived at the Lehra Khana railway station around 1400 hours IST. The train had left Bhatinda railway station at 1320 hours IST.

Senior district officials from Bhatinda have rushed to the spot to supervise rescue and relief operations. The injured have been admitted to hospitals at Bhatinda, Rampura Phul and Bhucho Mandi in the district.

The report said the fourth bogie of the train, in which the blast occurred, was totally smashed.

Additional Deputy Commissioner K D S Bhullar, district police chief B K Uppal, and other senior district officials have also rushed to the spot.

Teams of doctors and some social organisations from Bhatinda have also reached Lehra Khana to assist the authorities in rescue and relief operations, the report added.

UNI