India: Dozens injured in bomb blasts

Three bomb blasts in the western Indian state where Hindu-Muslim violence has claimed nearly 1,000 lives injured at least 36 people today, police and hospital officials said.

Officers at the state police control room said a bomb exploded in the busy market area of the Gurukul neighbourhood of Ahmadabad, the commercial hub of Gujarat state. The area is predominantly Hindu.

Five minutes later, another blast was reported in the Geetamandir neighbourhood of Ahmadabad, at a large bus terminal. Police said 11 passengers were critically injured in the mixed Hindu-Muslim community.

A few minutes later, a bomb exploded on a bus in Vasana suburb, also a mixed Hindu-Muslim neighbourhood. Police said 14 people were injured.

K.R. Kaushik, commissioner of police in Ahmadabad, confirmed the incident, but refused to comment further. Kaushik also said he would have to check with the hospitals about deaths.

Mayor Himmat Singh Patel said 18 people taken to the V.S. Hospital were all in serious condition.

The injured have been taken to at least five hospitals.