DERA GHAZI KHAN, June 16: A powerful bomb explosion on Thursday damaged one pillar of the tower supporting the main power transmission line at Kher near Fort Munro, a tribal area tehsil, while the three other devices planted nearby could not explode. The three unexploded devices had been planted close to the foundations of as many legs of the tower, which were later defused after nine-hour struggle by the disposal squad called from Layyah.

Reports said that Kher and Fort Munro, the bordering towns along the troubled Balochistan districts of Kohlu and Barkhan, were jolted at about 5.45am by the explosion seemingly aimed at damaging tower 114 of the main 33,000/132,000-KV transmission line, supplying power to the last towns of the Punjab

The commandant of the Border Military Police, Baluch Levy and political assistant to the tribal area, Syed Imtiaz Shah, told Dawn that all the devices were locally-made plastic bombs.

Traditional foot-tracers had been employed to get the footprints from the place of explosion, Mr Shah said expecting some important disclosure.

Despite repeated sabotage acts occurring in the district, the post of the bomb disposal officer has been lying vacant since long. While neither the district police nor civil defence department have any bomb disposal expert.

It was sixth sabotage activity in the district while first in the Baloch-dominated tribal area during the last sixth month.