For the first time, hospitals, where the dead and the injured were being rushed after the blasts, became the targets of terror attack as well. In fact, of the 29 reported dead until midnight tonight, 10, including two doctors, were killed in a blast in the Trauma Centre at the Meghaninagar Civil Hospital in Shahibaug and four lost their lives near the L G Hospital, about 7 km away. More than 40 were injured in each of these blasts.

The fact that these two explosions took place in or near hospitals at 7.45 pm — almost an hour after the first blast — and after at least five bombs had gone off across the city points to a sinister design to target the injured and their relatives and derail relief and rescue, said a senior police officer.

“Never before have we seen such a plot,” said the officer, “obviously the terrorists’ main objective was to strike the defenceless and deepen the fear.”

Incidentally, targeting hospitals after striking in other parts of the city finds mention as part of a terrorist’s plot in the Hindi film Contract, recently released by Ram Gopal Verma.

“A bomb went off right behind my brother Sanjay’s hand cart at Hatkeshwar at 6.30, which seriously injured him” said Nirmala Paswan a women in her early 30s. “While I rushed to see him at L G Hospital, a bomb went off here too and I was injured in the stampede that followed,” she said.

“I was standing right near the bush, when the bomb went off,” said Pavan Purohit, an eyewitness at the L G Hospital. The bomb, placed in a Maruti 800 car, was so powerful that the vehicle was thrown up about 20 feet in the air. “All I saw was a Maruti flying up in the air and landing with a thud,” Purohit said. The impact of the blast shattered the window panes of the Emergency ward, about 100 m away.

“We are trying to know the where about of our relative, Dr Prerak Shah, can you please help,” asked a distraught Minati Shah. “Prerak was an orthopaedic doctor here and we don’t know where he is ever since the blast,” she said.

The news was already out. Shah with his wife were dead along with many other in the hospital. The doctors knew it, so did the medical students, but to break the news to the family members was not an easy task. Some long minutes followed. And then Nain Shah, Minati’s husband returned from the doctors’ chambers. “Rinki (Kinjal) was three months pregnant, he had brought her for a check-up when this happened,” Minati said.6.31 pm: Hatkeshwar Circle

WHEN, WHERE

6.45 pm: Sardar Patel Diamond Market, Govindvadi, Thakkarnagar

7 pm: Sarangpur, near Khodiyar Temple, Jaymala Bus Stand

7:05 pm: Rajendranagar in Odhav

7:10 pm: Maninagar Bus Stand, Sarangpur

7:45 pm: Raipur, Sangum Theatre

7.54 pm: Civil Hospital Trauma Ward

8 pm: LG Hospital

8.08 pm: Mariyum Ni Chali