Four arrested in connection with Thar Express blast

Four persons have been arrested in connection with the explosion that derailed the India-bound Thar Express in Pakistan, with investigators saying a major tragedy could have occurred if the device had not exploded before the arrival of the train.

The 500 gram explosive device went off minutes before the arrival of the Thar Express train near Dhabaji in Sindh province on the early hours of Saturday.

An official of the bomb disposal squad in Hyderabad city, Riaz Shaikh, said that the 500 gram improvised explosive device was placed on the railway track near Dhabaji and exploded 22 minutes before the arrival of the train that runs through the Khokrapur border and links Pakistan and India.

"What we know is that two persons not identified as yet had placed the two explosive devices weighing 500 and 200 grams near a bridge on the track which is in a isolated place," he said.

"Luckily the 500 gram explosive device went off before the arrival of the train blowing up nearly a nearly five foot long portion of the track," Shaikh said.

He said the track was restored quickly and the train safely reached Mirpurkhas.

But because of the explosion, the train carrying 250 passengers, including a large number of Indians, reached Mirpurkhas three hours behind its schedule and also reached the zero point border between the two countries after a long delay.

Police officer, Zulfiqar Awan of Dhabeji police station said, four arrests had been made. He admitted that if the blast had taken place when the train was on the track it would have caused a major disaster as there was a deep raven underneath the bridge.

The Thar Express serves as a major means of transport for the people of Karachi and interior parts of Sindh who want to travel to India to meet their relatives and friends or for business purposes.