Six killed in bomb blast near nuclear plant in India

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Six killed in bomb blast near nuclear plant in India

(Xinhua) 08:12, November 27, 2013

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NEW DELHI, Nov. 26 -- Six persons, including two children and a woman, were killed and a few others injured seriously Tuesday evening when a bomb blast razed at least two houses at a village near a nuclear plant in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, said police.

The blast took place at Tsunami Colony of Idinthakarai, the epicenter of anti-nuclear protests against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project built with Russian technology.

Police said the toll could rise as people might have been trapped under debris.

Although police said the blast was "accidental", it was sensational as it occurred at the spot where a nuclear plant is located.

One presumption is that the bomb exploded when the miscreants were engaged in making a bomb in the house, said local daily newspaper the Hindu online.

Police suspected that the explosion could be because of rivalry between two groups who hail from Kooththenkuzhi, about 6 kilometers from Idinthakarai, said the newspaper, which is based in Chennai, state capital of Tamil Nadu.

Fire and rescue services personnel rescued four persons, including two children, trapped under debris. The injured were taken to hospital, said police.

Police sources said the explosion, which took place at 19:00 p. m. local time, completely destroyed two adjacent houses and led to chaos in the congested village near the coast.

Superintendent of Police Vijayendra S. Bidari, who reached Kudankulam around 8.45 p.m. told the Hindu that some youths tried to prevent fire tenders from entering the village.

The Press Trust of India said the nuclear power plant at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu is safe and functioning normally.

The news agency quoted a senior official of the Department of Atomic Energy as saying in New Delhi that "the plant is running fine and is safe."

A Home Ministry spokesman said in New Delhi that the bomb went off "accidentally" when some miscreants were making the explosive in their hut at around 18:40 p.m. at the village, Idinthakarai Tsunami Colony.