HYDERABAD: Railway tracks were blown up in twin explosions in Hyderabad and Khairpur districts on Tuesday evening, officials said.

However, they added, no casualty or major loss was reported in the incidents.

A locally-made bomb damaged upcountry track between Karachi and Hyderabad minutes before the arrival of a Lahore-bound Business Express here on Tuesday night near Hussainabad’s subway.

The locally-made bomb weighed between two and three pounds, according to the bomb disposal squad.

The incident took place at around 7pm as railway authorities based in Karachi were informed about halting of the train at 7.10pm.

Both the tracks remained closed for traffic as the two-and-half-foot track that was damaged in the blast was being repaired.

The upcountry trains were halted at Kotri, Bholari, Meeting, Jhimpir, Buradabad and Jung Shahi railway station by the administration.

The train was about to reach Hyderabad railway station after leaving the Kotri station when the track was damaged. Following the explosion, some area residents rushed to the track to signal Business Express to stop. The driver noted the signal and applied brakes around 400 metres from the blast site.

Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS) officials arrived at the site to collect evidence. According to BDS official Saleem Vistro, the locally-made bomb weighed two to three pounds. “We only found a shopping bag in which the miscreants had brought explosives that was fitted with a fuse”, he said.

He added that the bomb perhaps exploded before time otherwise it could have led to a disaster keeping in view the arrival time of Business Express.

He said the bomb was similar to those improvised explosive devices that had been used in recent attacks in and around Hyderabad.

ASP Dr Fahad said that terrorists had targeted the train but luckily disaster was averted.

He said that a pamphlet was found from the blast site but avoided disclosing its nature.

The police authorities had recently conducted raid for the arrests of activists of a banned organisation for their alleged involvement in subversive activities. Following the recent cracker explosions in Hyderabad that led to the killing of one person, some arrests were also made, according to a police official.

Another bomb exploded on the track a kilometre from the Gambat railway station in the Khairpur area on Tuesday evening.

Police and eyewitnesses said that about two-foot-long railway track was destroyed when the locally-made bomb exploded some time after the departure of the Shalimar Express to Karachi via Gambat railway station.

On directives of SSP Khairpur Asif Aijaz Shaikh, the Gambat and Kot Diji police reached the blast site and carried out search of the area.

Soon after the two explosions, the Quetta-bound Bolan Express coming from Karachi was halted for checking at the Jacobabad railway station.Sources said the train coming from Karachi was halted at the Jacobabad railways station due to rumours about a bomb in the train.

Jacobabad SSP Zafar Iqbal Malik along with heavy police force and bomb disposal squad reached the railway station. After a three-hour-long search, the train and station was cleared by the authorities.