Creating fear may not be the sole objective behind recent explosions on railway tracks in Punjab. Investigators now believe the larger aim is to disrupt the economy by targeting critical freight infrastructure.Preliminary findings in two explosions over the past three months indicate that the attackers may have deliberately focused on the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC), a key logistics artery that originates at Sahnewal, near Ludhiana, and stretches up to Dankuni in West Bengal.The corridor, designed for high-speed and high-capacity freight movement, connects Punjab’s industrial and agricultural output to eastern markets. It carries high-value cargo, including industrial goods, agri-produce, coal and steel and plays a crucial role in easing congestion on existing rail lines while accelerating logistics.Security agencies point out that disrupting this corridor right at the borders of Punjab can impact supply chains across northern and eastern India, affecting both domestic distribution and export networks.The Punjab Police have now fast-tracked investigations into the latest attempted blast near Rajpura, probing possible links with an earlier explosion on the freight corridor near Sirhind in January. Special DGP (Railways) Shashi Prabha Dwivedi said investigators are examining similarities between the two incidents, including the modus operandi and the possibility of a common network.“We were unlucky during the previous incident as we could not get leads despite our best efforts. However, in the present case, we have received crucial vital clues which suggest a pattern,” she said.Dwivedi confirmed that freight corridors appear to be the intended target. “It is clear that they want to hit the economy and act against the development of the region and the country,” she said.Police official investigating the matter said the January 23 blast occurred around 9.50 pm near Khanpur village, about 5 km from the Sirhind railway station, while a freight train was passing. The explosion ripped apart nearly a six-foot stretch of the newly built DFC track, damaged the engine and left the loco pilot injured.Investigators say a similar pattern has emerged in the latest incident, where the explosion was timed with the movement of a goods train. The loco pilot, though shaken, managed to avert a derailment. “Passengers were clearly not the target. Nor was the loco pilot. The intention was to disrupt goods supply,” Dwivedi said.Dwivedi indicated that such attacks point to a shift in targeting strategy, where critical infrastructure like freight corridors — vital for economic activity — are being viewed as high-impact vulnerabilities.