According to police, the IED — placed in Kailashnagar between lower part Shrinagardanda and human settlement — exploded at around 5:00 am today, terrifying the locals.

Police after the preliminary investigation of the site and remains of the IED said that the device might have been a pressure cooker bomb, according to Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Binod Ghimire at the District Police Office, Palpa.

Meanwhile, a banda (strike) called by Netra Bikram Chand Biplav-led Communist Party of Nepal affected life in the district.

Vehicles on short and long routes came to a halt, while educational institutions and the market remained closed due to banda.