Panic gripped the residents of Sonoli near Rakaskopp reservoir (the main drinking water source for Belagavi) when a live bomb-shell was found in a cashew field on the outskirts of the village, about 17 km away from here on Sunday.
Mystery shrouds the police and investigating teams as to how and from where the military ammunition landed.
Police Commissioner S. Ravi, who rushed to the spot, said the local bomb disposal unit certified that the mortar was a live bomb-shell. He said that measures have been taken up to dispose off the bomb with the help of bomb disposal units of Central Reserve Police Force and the Maratha Light Infantry Regimental Centre (MLIRC), which rushed to the spot.
Officials said that the bomb would be disposed off by today evening. The bomb disposal unit at Bengaluru has also been informed.
Mr. Ravi, however, could not immediately recognise the exact type of bomb shell and its make. He said the investigation was under process and the police was also looking into various aspects including how it landed in the civilian area.
Around 150 meters of radial distance from the bomb has been cordoned off and layers of sand bags erected around the bomb as a precautionary measure against any accidental explosion.
The bomb-shell was first detected by the owner of the field Ashok Shatoppa Patil on Saturday evening. A shocked and fear struck Mr. Patil did not reveal about the matter to anybody but informed the Belagavi Rural Police Station on Sunday morning.
