Powerful bomb blast in India's north-east kills nine
14 September AFP
A powerful bomb blast in India's restive northeast -- plagued for
decades by separatist violence -- has killed nine labourers and injured
about 21 other people, police said Saturday.
The explosion took place late Friday in a busy area on the outskirts
of Imphal, capital of the state of Manipur, which borders Myanmar.
"The bomb was planted in a makeshift tent and was of high intensity,"
Manipur police chief M.K. Das told AFP by telephone."Nine people have
been killed and about 21 injured. The injured have been shifted to local
hospitals with multiple wounds." Doctors said two of the injured were in
critical condition.
Police officials said the victims were migrant workers employed by a
Kolkata-based company.The motive for the explosion was not immediately
known. No rebel group has yet claimed responsibility.
The remote state has long been affected by insurgent violence and is
home to dozens of tribal groups and small guerrilla armies fighting New
Delhi's rule.They often compete against each other in turf wars for
dominance in the state.
At least 50,000 people have lost their lives in insurgency-driven
violence in six of India's seven northeastern states since the country's
independence from Britain in 1947, authorities say.
The militants say the northeast has been largely neglected by India's
political leaders, accusing them of focusing only on the development of
the country's relatively wealthier eight northern states. |