Bomb blast kills colonel and 2 soldiers in Assam:India

Two army soldiers, including a colonel, were killed in a powerful landmine explosion in Assam on Monday, officials said. (

A defence spokesperson said the army vehicle hit the landmine near the Balipara reserve forest area in Sonitpur district, about 210 km north of Assam's main city of Guwahati.

"The impact of the landmine was severe with the vehicle blown up, killing the colonel and his driver on the spot," an army commander said.

The remaining vehicles in the convoy were safe as they stopped the moment they saw one of the vehicle hit by the landmine.

"The colonel was on his way to his base at Tenga in adjoining Arunachal Pradesh, bordering China, when the incident occurred," the army official said.

Army and police teams have since cordoned off the area and launched a hunt. Police blame the outlawed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) for the attack. "It could be possible it was the handiwork of the NDFB," a senior police official said.

There are already intelligence inputs about militants trying to stage violent attacks ahead of the Independence Day.