Seven killed in train explosion in India

At least seven persons were killed and 80 injured, 20 of them seriously, when an explosion ripped through the Delhi-bound Shramjeevi Express from Patna near Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh Thursday evening.

The blast took place near the toilet of a general compartment of the train, two bogies from the engine, at around 5.15 pm, railway officials said.

Director General of UP Police Yashpal Singh said that a woman was among the seven persons killed in the explosion. He said of the 80 injured, admitted to nearby Badlapur hospital, the condition of 20 was stated to be serious, reports Outlook, India.

According to The Financial Express, Railways Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav earlier said in Patna it was unclear whether the explosion was caused by a bomb or by the gas cylinder of a cooking stove, sometimes carried by villagers on trains.

“There was a blast on an unreserved coach, but it wasn't a very big explosion,” Rajendra Singh, a senior railways official, said in Lucknow.

The train was traveling from Patna to the capital New Delhi.

“Luckily it was not very crowded. The coach didn't jump off the rail. Medical relief has been sent,” Singh said.

In a separate incident, Yadav said 20 homemade bombs had been found on another train, and four people had been arrested.