NAROWAL: A 90-pound decades-old artillery shell was found in the fields here and later defused by the bomb disposal squad.

Muhammad Aslam, a resident of Panwan Khokhar in the vicinity of Shakargarh, Narowal district, was working in his fields when he found the shell while ploughing. A large number of villagers gathered there and Aslam informed the Kot Nainan police station.

Police reached the spot and cordoned off the area as a safety measure. They informed the bomb disposal squad that rushed to the spot and defused the bomb. The squad’s commander, Muhammad Shabbir, claimed: “The bomb found in the fields was an India-made artillery shell and was defused.” District Civil Defence Officer Muhammad Asim Wahla said: “The India-made artillery shell weighs 90 pounds and was dropped during the Indo-Pak war of 1971. It was found while tilling the fields. It was defused and taken into custody.”

Published in Dawn, November 4th, 2019