Three injured in mortar shell blast in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba, 2 critical

Samba/Jammu, May 27

Three persons, including two women, were injured when a rusted mortar shell exploded in a field due to a fire in Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, officials said.

The condition of two of the injured is stated to be serious, they said.

The explosion occurred when some farmers were burning crop residue in the field in Khara Madhana village around 8.15 pm, the officials said.

They said Rameet Singh (66), Simro Devi (76) and Suriya Bibi (58), all local residents, sustained splinter injuries in the blast and were shifted to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu. The condition of Singh and one of the women is serious, they said.

After receiving information about the blast, police and forensic experts immediately rushed to the scene and recovered a piece of the rusted mortar shell, they said.

In the past, mortar shells have been recovered from fields in the area, according to the officials.