Hidden artillery ammunition found close to Bharatpur stn

JODHPUR: Exposing chinks in the security system, artillery ammunition was found hidden close to railway tracks in Bharatpur on Tuesday night. The unclaimed ammunition was found hidden in bushes close to the rail tracks, barely some distance from the Railway Post, as per police officials. Interestingly, neither the source of ammunition nor how it reached here has been ascertained or clarified by the army.
IG Bharatpur Range, Biju G Joseph, when contacted confirmed the recovery of the artillery ammunition totalling upto 22 or so. "The ammunition was recovered close to the railway station and the army shall be sending its experts to dispose off the stuff. Some of the ammunition has some percentage of explosives left live or unspent in the same. More details are awaited with respect to the live ammunition in the recovery," he said adding that the spot where the ammunition was discovered by the locals is more than five kilometres from the military station. Police is also working on other angles in the case while the army has maintained silence on the matter.
Perhaps there is more to what meets the eye here in this case. To begin with, it's the weight of the ammunition and the live ammunition, percentage of explosives, location of the cache and the unanswered question of lapse in the laid down procedures.
Some time back, an explosion from bombs while excavating the ground killed three armymen in Nasirabad and then a deadlock between the army and the district administration over similar ammunition recovered in civil area in Gangangar took more than two week to diffuse.
The repetitive theory of the army claiming that unexploded ordnance is picked up by civilians gaining unauthorised entry into the field ranges acquired by army (where these bombs and ammunition are fired), have also put a question mark on the 'access' and 'security' to these sensitive areas. Further, as per the laid down procedures, the contract of collecting these shells and ammunition from the field ranges is given to an authorised contractor. As such, there should ideally be no possibility of someone hiding the ammunition in bushes while dodging the authorities. and the claim high security in the Army areas.
Lt Col Manish Ojha, defence spokesperson, Rajasthan, when contacted for response from the South Western Command of army, said that a reply on the subject from the army is awaited. Such incidents create doubts about safety and security hazards posed by defence explosives and the mechanism by which it is finding its way into civil areas. As per the laid down procedures, the army has to ensure proper accounting of its ammunition, carry out destruction of blinds and clearance of range on termination of live firing," he further added.