Jhapa, January 20:

Simultaneous bomb blasts occurred at the Choti custom office at Mechinagar municipality-9, Nakkalbanda, a building housing ward office of Mechinagar-10 and the Sub Health Post at Mechinagar municipality-10, Kakadvitta, this afternoon.

No human casualties were reported in the blast.

Three masked men came on cycles to Choti customs office, warned those present in office that bomb could go off any moment and fled after the blast. The windows, doors and roof of the office have been damaged. Meanwhile, two Maoists, who came on a motorcycle, detonated a powerful bomb in the room of the Sub-health Post situated at Mechinagar-10, Kakadvitta, around same time.

No one was present in the room at the time of explosion. Sunita Giri, wife of the peon of sub health post, was in the building yard. The bomb went off as soon as the Maoists left the building, Giri said. The windows, doors and walls of the building were damaged. Polio vaccines kept at sub health posts that were to be administered to the children on Saturday were also damaged. Chief District Officer of Jhapa, Bhola Prasad Shivakoti, said details of loss incurred in the blasts have not been received.

Blast at NRB

Birgunj: The Maoists detonated a bomb outside the premises of the Birgunj-based regional office of the Nepal Rastra Bank on Friday evening, police said. A wall of the building and the glasses of the ne-arby houses were dam-anged, police said. — HNS