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After a chilling gap of about two years, terror struck Mumbai on Wednesday evening, killing at least 21 and injuring over 100 people.
The news of three blasts in the densely populated areas near Dadar Railway Station, Zaveri Bazaar and Opera House in Central Mumbai reverberated across the city, as office-goers headed home in the evening hours of a rain-drenched day.
The Union Home Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, said: “The number of dead could rise ... this is a coordinated attack by terrorists. There is no indication of any more blasts other than the three reported.”
The National Investigation Agency has been mobilised to assist the Mumbai police, while the city has been put on high alert, he added.
The trickle of news on the blasts sent city residents into a panic, coming as it does within two years of the terror-attack, when 10 gun-men held the city hostage. Six locations were attacked then, and 166 people were killed.
For a city that has witnessed terror, with a chilling regularity of two years in the recent past – the serial blasts brought home a familiar unpleasant reality.
Even the locations of the blast are not new to terror attacks, as Zaveri Bazaar, a diamond-merchant hub, was targeted in 2003, and 54 people were killed.
Mr Jayesh Shah was a diamond merchant and a witness to the blast.
“At 6.45-6.50 p.m., there was a loud noise. Then, there was loud explosion and 30-35 people were found injured on the street and after they rushed the injured to various hospitals.
“The explosion was near a food stall. It was a very congested and small area.”
Dr P.M. Bhujang, Medical Director of Harkishandas Hospital, told Business Line that 23 people have been admitted in the hospital with trauma and injuries, of whom 12 are in serious condition.
The Maharashtra Chief Minister, Mr Prithviraj Chavan, said that 21 ambulances have been despatched and the injured have largely been sent to JJ, Nair and KEM hospitals, in the heart of the city.
As night settled, the island city witnessed deserted roads, with a heavy presence only of the men-in-uniform policing the financial capital.
Alert in Chennai
Our Chennai Bureau reports: High alert has been issued at Chennai airport. Security has been heightened and patrolling has been intensified.
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