Rajgir ordnance factory gets bomb threat, multi-agency probe begins

Patna: A threat email was sent to the ordnance factory in Rajgir, Nalanda district, warning of a bomb blast.The email, sent from Tamil Nadu, claimed that seven bombs were planted in the factory and office campus, and they would be detonated. The email also mentioned the involvement of Pakistan’s ISI, Tamil Nadu’s DMK, and a controversy related to a religious site in Chennai.The email was received by the ordnance factory on Dec 5, but the police were informed and a formal complaint was lodged at the Rajgir police station on Monday. The police and security agencies have taken the threat seriously and have launched an investigation. The factory has been evacuated, and a search operation is underway. The email’s content suggests that the threat may be aimed at creating communal tension and spreading fear.Rajgir DSP Sunil Kumar Singh said, “In the preliminary investigation, the case appears to be a dangerous threat. We have shared this matter with the cyber cell, intelligence wing, and national security agency. Investigation is going on.”He further said in view of the threat, central and state investigation agencies, the defence ministry, and district administration are jointly conducting an intensive probe into the matter. The cyber cell has been assigned the responsibility of the technical investigation of the email and identifying its source, he added.The Rajgir Ordnance Factory is an extremely important defence production centre for the Indian Army. The foundation of this factory was laid in 1999 by the then defence minister George Fernandes. The govt granted formal recognition to this project in 2001.Modern ammunition like BMCS (Bi-Modular Charge System) is manufactured here, which is used in the Indian Army’s Dhanush and Bofors artillery guns. This is the country’s only factory that produces BMCS.This unit, operated under Munitions India Limited, is renowned nationally and internationally for its quality and indigenous production. Its products are exported to European countries and America.