MP: Hand grenade shells found in Jabalpur well shock cops, administration; probe underway

Jabalpur, April 4 (IANS) Hand grenade shells and empty cartridge shells found in a well in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur area on Friday have left the police and district administration shocked. An investigation has been initiated into the matter.

According to information, labourers were cleaning an abandoned well located under Ranjhi police station area in Jabalpur city when they noticed some heavy metal objects.

However, when the labourers dug them up, they realised that these were hand grenade and cartridge shells.

The cleaning of the well was being carrying out by the civic authority as part of a cleanliness drive in the city.

On coming to know about the discovery, the officials from Jabalpur Municipal Corporation arrived at the spot.

The labourers continued the process of digging and one after another they kept on finding hand grenade and cartridge shells dumped there.

Upon receiving information, a team of senior police officials also arrived at the spot and took all the material under their custody.

Meanwhile, the area surrounding the well has been declared a prohibited zone by the police and a further investigation is underway.

Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP), Suryakant Sharma, told media persons that around 50 hand grenades shells and empty cartridges were recovered.

He also confirmed that parts of the ammunition recovered from the well were very old and have been taken under possession by the police.

He said preliminary investigation suggested that the shells could have been brought from the Ordinance factory located in Khamariya.

Sharma also stated that things would become clearer once the investigation is done.

Local BJP MLA, Ashok Rohani, who also reached the spot, told media persons, "It is a very sensitive issue, which has surprised all of us. Several questions need to be answered. More importantly, if all these materials are from the Ordinance factory then the question arises how did it all reach here."

---IANS

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