Timely detection of a bomb by an alert patrol party minutes before departure of a passenger train here on Saturday morning averted a major tragedy even as a bomb hoax at Tundla railway station in Firozabad district forced Lucknow-bound Shatabdi Express to halt for over 30 minutes.
Police said in Farrukhabad that the bomb was set to go off at 6.20 a.m. minutes before Mainpuri passenger train was to depart at 6.40 am.
An alert Government Railway Police patrol team detected a “bomb-like” object was lying on platform number one near an old storehouse at Farrukhabad station, throwing security personnel into a tizzy.
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Acting swiftly, the railway officials evacuated passengers from the platform, halted the movement of trains and immediately contacted a bomb disposal squad in Kanpur, they said.
The bomb disposal squad led by M.K. Pandey confirmed it was a bomb timed to explode at 6.20 a.m., but it did not go off as the timer developed a problem.
He said further details would be available only after a thorough probe into the matter.
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The information regarding a bomb on board the Shatabdi Express was received but later it turned out to be a hoax, an official spokesman said.
“Following information regarding the bomb on board the Shatabdi Express, the train was stopped at Tundla in Firozabad district this morning around 8:30 am,” a police officer said. — PTI