New Delhi: A boy studying in the sixth standard died after a ‘defused’ bomb that he picked from an Army cantonment area in Roorkee exploded on Saturday.
According to the reports, the bomb was defused by the Army and was lying on the road. The boy picked it and kept it inside his school bag.
Moment he reached Roorkee’s DAV College, the bomb exploded and he died.
The Uttarakhand Chief Minister has expressed grief and an investigation has been ordered into the matter.
But IANS reports say that the blast took place near a college where Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) was holding an event to mark the anniversary of Babri mosque demolition.
Police said the blast took place at a garbage dump, some 20-metres from DAV College. The boy was identified as Tushar.
Police said the entire area was cordoned off and they were trying to ascertain reasons behind the explosion.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat told reporters: “As of now we cannot say anything with surety but police are trying to find it out. Let us give them some time to get to the bottom of the incident.”
He also expressed grief at the loss of life in the blast.
Additional director general of police Ram Singh Meena has left for the blast site to supervise search operation and investigation.
Another official told media that all participants, including a Bharatiya Janata Party legislator from Uttar Pradesh, at VHP’s ‘Shaurya Diwas’ function are safe. Soon after the blast, the VHP was asked to wind up its programme, he added.
District officials said there were conflicting reports about the incident.
They said some suggested that the explosion took place because of a diffused army bomb that could have come inadvertently from the cantonment area in the city. Some weeks back, an army bomb was discovered on a roof top in a nearby locality.
