Deadly blasts leave carnage in ancient Indian city

Published on Tuesday 13 May 2008 18:06

AT LEAST 30 people were killed and 100 injured after a series of bombs exploded tonight in the historic Indian tourist city of Jaipur.

Five blasts ripped through crowded parts of the ancient city in western India in an apparent coordinated attack.

The explosions were in markets and several other areas of the city in Rajasthan, a region dotted with palaces and temples that draw hundreds of thousands of Indian and foreign tourists every year.

They were "obviously a terror attack," Rajasthan's police chief, AS Gill said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blasts.

The first blast took place at 7.25pm (2.55pm BST), police said, and another reportedly hit a market near a temple dedicated to the Hindu monkey god Hanuman.

Tuesdays are the day of worship set aside for Hanuman, and the temple was packed with people offering prayers on the way home from work.

Another blast took place near the Johari Bazaar, the city's jewellery market, a popular destination for tourists.

The tourist season, however, ended in March and there were no immediate indications that foreigners had been caught in the explosions.

The Foreign Office said it was "investigating" whether Britons were caught in the blasts.

A spokeswoman for UK travel organisation Abta said around 2,000 British tourists would be expected in Jaipur at this time of year. She said holiday companies with tour groups in the city would pass information to Abta and the Foreign Office as the situation developed.