Hyderabad: PM visits blast sites, hospitals; appeals for calm

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday visited Hyderabad's blast sites and hospitals where the injured are being treated to express "solidarity" with the people of the city and appealed for peace and calm.

He lauded the people of the city for refusing to be provoked by the "nefarious" act.

Singh visited the twin blast sites and Omni and Yashoda Hospitals where he met some of the injured and their families, assuring them of all help.

"I have come to share the grief of people of Hyderabad. I express condolence for the families of the bereaved and wish speedy recovery for the injured," Singh said after meeting the blast victims at the hospitals.

He also said the state government has assured all medical help for them.

"The state government has assured all help will be given for treatment," Singh, who flew in here from Delhi by a special IAF plane, said.

Making an appeal for peace, he said, "I call upon the people to maintain calm in this hour of grief. I am happy that people of Hyderabad have refused to be provoked by this nefarious incident."

Singh had on Saturday strongly condemned the blasts, saying those responsible for the "dastardly" act would not go unpunished.

Consoling the mother of one of the injured K Parmeshwar, Singh said all possible care will be provided to her son, the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

"The staff will take all possible care of your son," he told her.

He assured another blast victim Sudhakar Reddy that "we will provide all possible medical help to you and others".

Talking to Rajitha, an injured undergoing treatment at Yashoda hospital at Malakpet, Singh said, "I am here to share your pain and grief. We will take care of you."

Before leaving for Delhi, the Prime Minister told Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy to find a mechanism to provide jobs to those grievously hurt and disabled in the blasts.

Singh was received this morning at the Begumpet airport by Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimham, the chief minister and his cabinet colleagues.

From the airport, he, along with the Governor and the chief minister, flew by a helicopter to Victoria Memorial Home where a helipad was constructed for his visit.

From there, he went to Dilsukhnagar by road where the two bombs had exploded within a span of a few minutes on Thursday, killing 16 people and leaving 117 injured. He was at the blast area for about ten minutes and spent nearly 40 minutes with the injured.

Singh is seen Andhra Pradesh CM Reddy and governor Narasimhan at Dilsukhnagar. PTI

Singh also held a review meeting with the chief minister and the state ministers during which Director General of Police V Dinesh Reddy briefed him about the progress of the investigation into the case.

The Prime Minister was told that certain "clear clues" were obtained based on footage of the closed-circuit cameras at the scene and also questioning of some terror suspects lodged in jails here.

"We are working in close coordination with the National Investigation Agency and are hopeful of cracking the case soon," the DGP was said to have told the Prime Minister.

The chief minister informed Singh during his nearly three-hour-long visit that about 3500 closed-circuit cameras were being installed across the state capital to step up surveillance.

Union Ministers Balram Naik, Sarvey Satyanarayana, Panabaka Lakshmi, deputy chief minister Damodara Rajanarasimha, state home minister Sabita Indra Reddy and senior officials were among others who received and saw off the Prime Minister.