Kerala’s Palakkad South Police executed a flawless operation late Wednesday, intercepting a mini lorry smuggling thousands of explosives disguised under watermelons. The stunning discovery happened on Yakkara Service Road near the Government Medical College, seizing materials that could fuel devastating blasts.
South Inspector Vipin Kumar’s secret intelligence sparked the action. Patrols intensified, and when a lorry ignored a stop signal and fled, police gave chase before boxing it in. Inside, beneath the fruit cargo, lay more than 100 boxes packed with 18,000 gelatin sticks and 4,800 detonators—items prized in quarries but deadly in wrong hands.
Bomb disposal experts secured the site as the Tamil Nadu-based driver, Senthil Kumar, was detained. He admitted sourcing the explosives from Thuppur near Dharapuram for delivery to Thrissur. Yet, police believe this points to an organized network, prompting deeper probes into potential links with illegal mining or worse.
Echoing a similar bust last year where over 40,000 sticks and 5,000 detonators were nabbed, this seizure underscores persistent border smuggling threats. Officials vow comprehensive investigations to dismantle the racket and prevent misuse of these powerful explosives.
