Somnath Express halted for 6 hours in Punjab's Ferozepur after bomb threat; hoax caller held in West Bengal

Ferozepur, July 30

The Somnath Express, which runs between Jammu and Rajasthan, got delayed for around six hours after police received an anonymous call claiming a bomb had been planted on the train.

The train was halted at Kasu Begu railway station near Ferozepur at 7.42 am and all passengers were evacuated following the call, which later turned out to be hoax.

The hoax caller was later nabbed in South 24 Parganas district by the West Bengal police following information shared by the Punjab police.

The Somnath Express runs between Jammu Tawi in Jammu and Kashmir and Bhagat Ki Kothi in Rajasthan.

The police control room received a call claiming there was a bomb on the Somnath Express. Soon after, the train was halted at Kasu Begu railway station, around 10 km from Ferozepur, SSP Saumya Mishra said.

The area was cordoned off and passengers were evacuated, she said.

Later, the police pressed four teams of dog squad into service. Police teams from neighbouring districts, including Moga and Faridkot, were also called for the search operation and bomb squads were also called to help in the search operation.

An ambulance and a fire brigade were also stationed there, said police.

Due to the extensive operation, the train remained halted for almost six hours at Kasu Begu railway station and finally departed at 1.55 pm after the security clearance from various security agencies, said officials.

Villagers with help of NGOs and police served tea and food to the passengers who had to bear the brunt of the bomb threat since 8 am.