8-year-old hurt in IED blast

JAIPUR: An eight-year-old girl suffered injuries after a ball-shaped explosive blasted in her hand in Muhi town near Dausa on Friday morning.

According to police, Bharti Bairwa was on her way to school when she found a ball-shaped explosive which she kept in her bag.

“The girl bunked school and returned home. She kept her bag in a room and went out for Teej celebrations. She returned for lunch and opened the bag to play with the ball,” said Niranjan Singh, in-charge, Baswa police station.

According to the police, the girl was playing with the ball when it exploded suddenly.

Bharti’s grandmother Nagno Devi, her cousin Nitesh (6) and brother Mohit (6) also suffered injuries because of the explosion which triggered a widespread panic in the village.

“Bharti lost her palm in the explosion. She and others were rushed to a local hospital where Nitesh, Mohit and Nagno Devi were discharged after first-aid treatment,” Singh said. Later, Bharti was referred to Jaipur as doctors felt that her palm needed treatment from specialists. She is now out of danger.

The police suspect that the explosive material may have been a home-made bomb often used by locals on Dausa-Bandikui border to ward off or kill wild pigs.

“People here wrap potassium powder in wheat flour and place it near farms in order to kill animals that damage their crops. The girl had mistaken the explosive for a toy and took it along to play with it,” the police said.

The village is five kilometres from Bandikui. “The locals here regularly use such explosives. In the past too, there have been reports of such explosions. We are investigating the case,” the police said.