Twin blasts in Chennai station; 1 killed, 14 injured

According to reports, the blasts occurred around 7.30 am in the sleeper coaches S4 and S5 of  Train No.12509, Bangalore-Guwahati Express as it entered platform number 9 of the station. Both coaches were damaged in the blasts.

The woman who lost her life in the incident was identified as Swati, 24. She was an employee of the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

The Railways announced a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the family of the woman killed in the blasts.

Of the 14 injured, condition of two are serious and they are being operated upon, said the Railways.

All injured were admitted to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.

"There were two separate low intensity blasts inside the train. The police are investigating the matter," said Southern Railways General Manager Rakesh Mishra.

However, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said it is not ruling out the terror angle into the incident.

A NIA team is heading for Chennai to begin a probe.

Police and bomb disposal squads, along with sniffer dogs, rushed to the blast site immediately after the explosions. The entire station area has been cordoned off and train services have been temporarily suspended.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Chennai said: "The act highlights the desperation and cowardice of those responsible."

Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge said they are taking quick action and will soon reach a conclusion on the incident.

A senior railway police official in Bangalore said: "We have upgraded security by posting armed guards, task force. In Bangalore we have three for railways stations."

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Thursday ordered Crime Branch-Crime Investigation Department (CB-CID) probe into the incident.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has offered all forms of assistance to the state government.

"I am in Himachal Pradesh at the moment. But I have directed my officials to provide all sorts of assistance to the state government," Shinde told media over phone.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said threat perception was there and they had informed Shinde.

She said it happened close to the party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's campaign trail.

BJP expresses its note of caution at this moment, she said.

The police on Thursday released one of the two suspects detained in the twin blasts at the Chennai Central Railway Station.

The railway police had detained a man who was found hiding in the train with explosives. But he was later released as he was found "innocent" by the cops.

The Indian Railways on Thursday afternoon released the list containing the names of the woman killed and those injured in the incident:

Major Injuries

Unidentified - Male

Sumantho Devnath - 37 Years - Male

Minor injuries

Shaiful Haque - 27 Years - Male

Anjanedu - 29 Years - Male

Vimal Kumar Das - 43 Years - Male

Shagun Kumar Rai - 23 Years - Male

Altaf Khan - 17 Years - Male

Uma - 35 Years - Female

Jitendra Mohanto Deka - 58 Years - Male

Sari - 21 Years - Male

Murali - 27 Years - Male

Bijoy Kumar - 14 Years - Male

Sudanchand Debnath - 64 Years - Male

Surendra Varma - 31 Years - Male

The train had left Guwahati in Assam for Bangalore in Karnataka on Tuesday. It was reportedly running about two hours late.

Chennai helpline number: 044-25357398.

Bangalore helpline numbers: 08022356409, 08022156553

Railway control number: 08022876288  

Image: Wikimedia Commons