Goalpara, Assam:
Passengers of the Kamakhya-Puri Express had a close shave after a powerful bomb was found inside the train in lower Assam's Goalpara district today, where another Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was also recovered from a residence, officials said.
The five-kg IED was recovered from a sleeper coach of the Puri-bound train at Pancharatna railway station at around 5.30 am during checking.
An electronic detonator, batteries and electrical wire were also recovered along with the IED, they said.
Though it was not immediately known which militant outfit was responsible for this, one person was arrested.
Another powerful IED weighing about three kgs was seized from a residence at Hatimura, under Dudhnoi police station, during a search operation by the security forces today, they said.
The house owner, Dholaram Rabha, who was suspected to be a militant of either local extremist groups Rabha Viper Army or the Garo National Liberation Army, was arrested.
The police, Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Army have launched intensive joint search operations in the district on the tip-off that insurgents might resort to subversive activities in the run up to the Independence Day.
The Centre has alerted the states about the chances of a terror attack, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir and the North East.
The anti-talk faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and 11 other North East insurgent outfits have jointly called for a boycott of the Independence Day celebrations and a general strike on August 15.