A pipe bomb meant to possibly derail a train with an explosion was detected on the railway track at Velloor near Kottayam on Thursday. Its timely detection averted a major mishap but train traffic along the route was held up for over two hours. Police took into custody a person in Kottayam in connection with the incident but he was let off after questioning. It is learnt that the wrong configuration of the bomb averted a blast.
The bomb kept in a tiffin box was found by a signals technician around 9.50 am. It was later defused by the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) from Kochi. The police suspect the hand of subversive elements behind the incident.
The bomb deposited in a steel tiffin box was found close to a signal control box near a railway bridge at Thonnalloor. Sunny Kurian, signal technician at Piravom Road railway station, first noticed the bomb while he was on an inspection of electrical equipment and immediately informed the station master of Piravom station. The railway officials alerted the Railway Protection Force and Velloor police station. The BDDS team from Kochi and anti-sabotage team from Kottayam rushed to the spot and defused the bomb.
The Thiruvananthapuram-bound Jan Shatabdi and Island Expresses were halted at Mulanthuruthi station and Sabari and Parasuram Expresses heading towards Ernakulam were stopped at Piravom Road.
According to BDDS officials, the bomb was set in two parts having a live bomb and a dummy in two black pipes used for electrical wiring works. The live bomb was fitted with a pipe having a width of one-and-a-half-inch and a length of four inches, in which the explosive was connected with a detonator.
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