Jamshedpur, April 16 (IANS) Panic gripped the Panipat–Nagurdasai area under Baharagora in Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district after a massive live bomb dating back to the Second World War was recovered from the banks of the Subarnarekha River. This is the third instance of wartime explosives being found in the area within the past month.

According to local residents, the falling water level of the river due to rising temperatures has exposed these old bombs that were buried beneath the sandy surface.

As per information received, late on Wednesday night, some villagers from Nagurdasai had gone to the riverbank to fish when they spotted a large, suspicious iron-like object on the sand. On closer inspection, they realised it was a bomb, triggering panic in the area.

Acting on the villagers’ information, the Baharagora police station team rushed to the spot and cordoned off the entire area. Authorities imposed a complete restriction on the movement of villagers near the site as a precautionary measure.

Although the bomb is decades old, experts warn that it may still retain explosive potential and could cause a major accident at any time.

On March 17, two powerful bombs were recovered from the same area, which were identified by the army as American-made. At that time, it took significant effort by Army experts to defuse the nearly 227-kg bomb. The area was turned into a high-security zone, and a radius of around 1.5 kilometres was evacuated. The bomb was eventually neutralised through a controlled blast using sandbag barricades.

Repeated recovery of explosives suggests that several more bombs may still be buried underground in the entire belt. Residents living along the Subarnarekha riverbank have demanded that the district administration and the state government conduct a comprehensive scan of the area using modern equipment.

Villagers say that until a thorough inspection is carried out, venturing into fields and riverbanks will remain life-threatening.

Local experts note that the region was strategically active during the Second World War, which could explain why several bombs from that era remain buried here.

For now, the police have informed senior officials and the Army’s bomb disposal squad, and surveillance of the area continues until experts arrive.

–IANS

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