J&K: Blast reported 12 km from PM Modi's rally venue; probe on

Srinagar, Apr 24: A blast has been reported by villagers in an open agricultural land in Lalian village, Bishnah, Jammu on Sundy morning.

Police suspecting that it was caused by a lightning strike or a meteorite. The blast was reported in Lalian village in Bishnan belt, they said. "We suspect it to be a meteorite.... might be lightning", a senior police officer told PTI. Investigations are on.

The blast was heard at around 4:30 am on Sunday. The Laliana village is in the Bishnah tehsil of Jammu district, 12 kms from the venue where PM Modi will be addressing a huge gathering.

Visuals showed cops and villagers around the crater, suggesting that the explosion had triggered panic in the area.

Security has been stepped in the region ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to inaugurate and lay foundation stone of development projects worth over Rs 20,000 crore in Jammu and Kashmir, including the opening of the Banihal-Qazigund road tunnel to establish all-weather connectivity between the two regions of the union territory.