The paddy fields of Mundathikode in Thrissur, where 14 persons were charred to death, still echo horror and unease. A sea of policemen walked across the strikingly green paddy fields that lay adjacent to the barren fields where the explosion took place. A pall of death, loss and confusion hung over everything.

A confused set of relatives, friends and neighbours hovered about, often accidentally stepping into the cordoned off site.