Blast at railway track in Patiala was attempted detonation, killed operator: Punjab Police

Punjab Police on 28 April said the blast on a dedicated freight corridor railway track near the Shambhu area in Patiala district was an attempted detonation and not a low-intensity explosion as initially suspected.

The person allegedly trying to carry out the detonation died in the blast, police said.

The explosion took place around 10 pm on Monday near Bothonia village on the Shambhu-Ambala freight rail corridor.

Police said an unidentified body was found blown to pieces at the site, with remains scattered across the railway track stretch.

The blast also damaged the track and created a small crater beneath the railway line.

‘Not a low-intensity explosion’

Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Varun Sharma said investigators initially treated the incident as a low-intensity blast, but subsequent findings pointed to an attempted detonation.

“Late night, we had received information about a low intensity explosion at a railway track near Shambhu-Haryana border. Immediately, I, along with the deputy inspector general of police and other senior officials, rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation,” Sharma said.

“We found that it was not a low intensity explosion but an attempted detonation,” he added.

According to the SSP, the person attempting to trigger the blast died during the operation.

“During the attempt, the person who was trying to carry out the detonation died, and his body has been recovered,” Sharma said.

SIM card among evidence recovered

Police said investigators recovered a SIM card and other material from the blast site, and technical analysis is underway.

“After getting whatever scientific evidence including a SIM card from the spot, police have launched technical investigation,” Sharma said.

“We expect that we will soon unravel the whole conspiracy,” he added.

Officials said the Government Railway Police (GRP), Railway Protection Force (RPF), forensic experts and bomb disposal teams are jointly investigating the case.

Railway authorities have completed repair work on the damaged section and rail traffic on the freight corridor has resumed, a GRP official said.

Second such incident in months

The latest explosion marks the second blast involving a dedicated freight corridor in Punjab in recent months.

In January, a blast on a freight corridor track in Sirhind in Fatehgarh Sahib district damaged a train engine and injured a loco pilot.

Dedicated freight corridors are critical rail infrastructure used for cargo movement across the country. The fresh blast has raised security concerns over railway installations in Punjab, prompting intensified investigation by multiple agencies.