Director General of Police V. Dinesh Reddy has said that improvised explosive devices (IEDs) with nitro compound were used in the explosions that killed 13 persons and left 83 injured.
He did not hazard a guess whether RDX was used in the bombs but asserted that they were timed as the two powerful explosions took place within a gap of three minutes and were only hundred yards apart.
Mr. Reddy, who returned from New Delhi only on Thursday after attending a meeting convened by the Central government to discuss the naxalite situation in various affected states, drove straight from the airport to the scene of the twin blasts at 7.10 p.m.
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Talking to media persons later, Mr. Reddy said the first blast took place at 6.58 p.m. near Konark theatre and the second three minutes later near Venkatadri theatre. The bombs were placed in “rexine” bags and hung to bicycles at both the places. The locations were selected strategically to inflict maximum damage as they were crowded areas.
No signs of more bombs were available after sanitising the entire area. A massive search operation in and around the locations was taken up in fear of more blasts.
Mr. Reddy said that it was too premature to suspect the role of any particular group in the blasts. He denied picking up anybody or coming to know of any similarities with earlier explosions at Lumbini Park or Gokul Chat in 2007.
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A high alert was sounded across the State and the Centre despatched rapid action force personnel to deal with the situation. A post-energy blast team that specialises in tackling this kind of blasts, also left New Delhi for Hyderabad. The investigation was being handed over to the National Investigation Agency, he said.
The DGP appealed to the people not to panic as the police were fully geared to meet the situation. He hoped there would be a breakthrough in investigation soon. He also said the Union Home Secretary R.K. Singh and IB chief Asif Ibrahim were in constant touch with him.