India: Five killed in bomb blasts

A bomb blew up a bus carrying paramilitary soldiers and their families, killing two soldiers and a child in the second explosion of the day in the insurgency-hit northeastern Indian Assam state, police said.

Six others were injured in the explosion, which came hours after a bomb planted inside a passenger bus exploded in the same region, killing two people and wounding 33 others.

In the second explosion, which occurred near Satipara village in western Assam, the bomb was planted under a culvert and went off as the Border Security Force soldiers passed over it, said Inspector General of Police Khagen Sharma.

The soldiers were travelling with their families on holiday, Sharma said.

Satipara is 125 miles west of Gauhati, Assam’s capital. The earlier explosion was reported from Gossaigaon town, 155 miles west of Gauhati, Assam’s capital.

Sharma blamed outlawed militants of the United Liberation Front of Asom, who operate in the area, for the blasts.