Shinde visits blast sites, meets injured in hospitals

, Feb 22:Union Home Minister

on Friday morning visited the site of the twin bomb blasts in Hyderabad which claimed several lives and injured over 100.

Shinde inspected the blast sites in Dilsukhnagar along with Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and state Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy and other officials. They also visited some of the hospitals where they met non-critical and semi-critical victims of the blasts.

Shinde later said in a press conference that while 14 people were killed in the blasts, six out of 119 injured people were critical and that the state government had appointed an investigation team. He announced the amount of compensation declared by the state government and the Prime Minister for the kin of the dead and the injured. Two more people died in the hospital later.

He also added that it was not possible to say who was responsible for the terror attack at this very moment and one will have to wait till the investigation were over.

Shinde, however, said he would not divulge much details since the Parliament is currently in session.

Director General of Police Dinesh Reddy briefed the Union home minister about the serial blasts in the crowded area. The Andhra Pradesh capital was also rocked by twin blasts in August 2007.

Here are some highlights pertaining to the blast case:

1. The probe into the serial blasts has been taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Teams from the NIA and National Security Guard (NSG) have reached Hyderabad to probe the explosion.

2. Shinde will reportedly present statement in both houses of the Parliament on the blasts.

3. The UN Secretary Genral has strongly condemned the attack.

4. Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu cancelled his padyatra programme in the wake of the blasts.

OneIndia News