JOWAI: A low intensity blast on Republic Day at Ladrymbai in East Jaintia Hills has created a fear psychosis among the people. Though no one was injured in the explosion, window panes of two houses were damaged due to the impact of the blast.
Monica Dkhar whose house were damaged in the blast informed this scribe that she was inside her house when she heard a loud blast and immediately rushed out to see that the road was full of broken glasses and damaged window panes.
The explosion which occurred  on the roadside damaged the windows of two buildings on opposite sides of the road.
Amid confusion on whether the explosion was caused by a crude bomb or a hand grenade, the East Jaintia Hills district police chief said, “Some people had set a dustbin on fire and something inside got burnt which led to the blast”.
Police rushed to the spot immediately after receiving information of the blast and sealed the road until the arrival of the DIG, the SP and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) experts from Shillong.
Fortunately, the entire Ladrymbai area wore a deserted look and all business establishments were closed on account of Republic Day, as a result of which there was no injury to anyone.
According to local residents when the blast occurred there were no pedestrians passing by. “Had it been a normal day many would have been injured due to the broken glasses,” said a local resident.
Police still clueless on Jhalupara blast
Almost two and half months after the November 12 blast in the Cantonment area at Jhalupara, police seem to have no answer yet on the perpetrators of the blast.
No arrest has yet been made and police are tightlipped on the incident. Though a FSL team had conducted a detailed investigation into the blast, the outcome of their investigation is yet to be known.
East Khasi Hills SP M. Kharkrang continues to claim that police were conducting investigation into the blast. Asked if there was any similarity between the blasts at Jhalupara and Ladrymbai, the district police chief said the report was yet to be received from the East Jaintia Hills police.
