Police today said that an investigation has been launched into the explosion which had occurred inside a train at the Chilaw railway station last night, injuring a railway employee.
R.L. Sanjeewa Ranasinghe, an employee of the railway department, is currently receiving treatment at the Chilaw Hospital for injuries sustained from the blast which took place at around 7.20pm yesterday.
However, hospital sources say that he is not in critical condition.
The train in question which travels between Colombo Fort and Chilaw had left the Fort Railway Station at 4.30pm and reached the Chilaw station by 7.10pm.
After the passengers had disembarked from the train, the railway employee had been engaged in cleaning duties inside one of the coaches.
He had discovered a bag behind a seat in the second coach and upon shaking the bag it had exploded, police said.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that a piece of plastic tube, with a diameter of 1 ½ inches, had exploded inside the bag.
Police said that the plastic tube had contained gun powder and iron pellets and that the explosion had not caused severe damage to the train.
Chilaw Police is conducting further investigations into the incident.
