Minutes after the twin blasts ripped through bogies S4 and S5 of the Bangalore-Guwahati Express at Chennai Central on Thursday morning, the station came under elaborate police cover. Intensive checks of all the belongings of passengers at railway stations were conducted.
The low intensity bomb blasts, suspected to have been triggered by timer devices placed inside bags under seats in the two compartments, occurred around 7.10 a.m. when the passengers were disembarking from the train after it arrived minutes earlier.
Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel were stationed in large numbers at all entry and exit points at stations and passengers’ baggage was subjected to thorough inspection. The bomb squad, along with GRP and RPF teams, combed platforms and trains departing and chugging into Chennai Central from Thursday morning.
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The city police force is also on high alert with teams carrying out inspections and vehicles checks at more than 120 locations across Chennai. Other railway stations including Chennai Egmore and Tambaram have been placed under intensive police cover with passengers allowed to pass only after a detailed examination of their belongings. Security has been beefed up at Chennai Airport, sources said.