Jharkhand: Maoist Bomb blast on railway track in Dhanbad derails diesel locomotive

According to Rajesh Kumar, Chief Public Relations Officer, Eastern Central Railway, a bomb exploded on the railway line between DEMU railway station and Richughutta railway station on the Dhanbad Division, causing a diesel train to derail. In the early hours of Saturday, suspected members of the banned CPI (Maoist) blew up a section of railway tracks in Jharkhand's Latehar district, halting train services on the Barkakana-Garhwa route, police said. According to the permanent way inspector of Latehar, a bomb exploded on the railway tracks between Richughuta and Demu stations at 12.30 a.m., while a diesel loco was on a run in the section.

Members of a CPI-Maoist squad blew up railway tracks in Latehar, disrupting the movement of trains on the Barkakana-Garhwa rail route. This was informed by Deputy Inspector General of Police, Palamu Range, Raj Kumar Lakra to PTI. "Due to this, both up and down movements of trains were blocked. Various railway officials including Additional Divisional Railway Manager, Senior Divisional Mechanical Engineers, Senior Divisional Engineer were rushed to the spot," read the official statement.

Bomb blast on railway track derails diesel locomotive

The terrorist organisation has called for a nationwide bandh on Saturday to protest the arrest of its top commander Prashant Bose alias Kishan Da by the Jharkhand Police, who was carrying a Rs 1 crore bounty on his head. In Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra, Bose was the mastermind of more than 100 attacks and arsons. The railway authorities, according to Lakra, are currently working on fixing the rails.

Following the incident, all police stations in the Palamu, Garhwa, and Latehar districts of the Central Eastern Railway's Dhanbad Division were alerted, according to the DIG. The trolley of a diesel engine was destroyed in the blast, according to ECR Railway spokesperson PK Mishra. He added that special teams from Barkakana and Barwadih had arrived on the scene to restore the railway lines, and that work is underway.

2 trains cancelled; several diverted

The line is currently being repaired and restored. The up line is now clear, while the down line is still in the works. There have been no recorded casualties, according to Latehar Police officials. The Dehri On Sone - Barwadih Passenger Special (03364) and Barwadih - Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Gomo Special train (03362) were cancelled, and the routes of other trains were changed as a result of the event, according to the railway officials. Several trains have been rerouted, and the special trains Dehri-Onsone-Barwadih and Barwadih-Nesubogomo have been cancelled. Passenger buses from Medininagar to Ranchi have also been halted, according to a state government official.

With inputs from ANI and PTI

IMAGE: PTI