• Source:JND
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Three coaches of the Quetta-bound Jaffer Express train derailed due to an explosion on Monday, leaving one injured in Pakistan's southeast Sindh province. While railway officials said that it may take up to another five hours to restore the track from rain traffic, the Sindh administration has ordered an investigation into the incident.

Sukkur Railways Divisional Superintendent Jamshaid Alam said the Jaffar Express was travelling from Peshawar to Quetta when it got caught in an explosion near Shikarpur in Sindh Province. Rescue teams from Sukkur were immediately dispatched to start repair work. "Following the blast, train operations have been suspended," Alam said, adding that passengers "faced serious difficulties due to the derailment". This is not the first time the train has suffered such an incident.

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Pakistan Railway Ministry ruled out explosion

However, in a statement late on Monday evening, the railways ministry said locals living around the station perceived the sound of the derailing train as that of an explosion and panicked, assuming it was an act of terror, Dawn reported. The ministry ruled out explosion as the cause of the accident. It said an unfamiliar terrorist outfit “took advantage of the incident” and falsely labelled it as an “armed attack” and claimed responsibility. “This claim is not only baseless, but also tantamount to an example of opportunism and irrelevance.”

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In June, the detonation of a remote-controlled explosive device fitted to rail tracks derailed four bogies of the Jaffar Express near the cattle market in Jacobabad. No one was injured in the incident, but the attack was reportedly claimed by the banned Baloch Republican Guards in a statement. On March 11, the train became the target of an unprecedented hijacking when terrorists fired on the locomotive and took over 400 passengers hostage. 

(With inputs from agencies)