28 students injured in blast in Kashmir tuition centre

Srinagar, Feb 13 (IANS) Twenty-eight students were injured on Wednesday in a powerful but mysterious explosion in a tuition centre in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, triggering clashes between civilians and security personnel.

The tuition-cum-coaching centre was being run in a private school called 'Falai-e-Millat' in Narbal village near Kakapora town, about 30 km from Srinagar.

Doctors at Pulwama District Hospital said they received 17 students with injuries and three among these with serious wounds were referred to Srinagar for specialized treatment.

Eleven other students were taken to a sub-district hospital in Pampore town - and again three of them were shifted to Srinagar.

All six in Srinagar were stated to be in stable condition.

Javed Ahmed, the teacher who escaped unhurt while teaching the Class 10 students, could not recall what really happened.

"There was a deafening explosion after which hell broke loose inside the classroom," he said. "Honestly, I have no idea how many students were injured."

Police said they were yet to establish how or why the blast took place.

Governor Satya Pal Malik expressed his deep regrets over the incident and approved Rs 50,000 to each injured student.

All educational institutions are closed in the Kashmir Valley these days due to winter recess.

An earlier unconfirmed report said the explosion took place when one of the students was fiddling with a grenade he was carrying.

Meanwhile, civilians clashes with security personnel as news about the explosion spread in Narbal village.