LAHORE, Pakistan -- A powerful bomb exploded in a crowded commercial district of the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore Monday, injuring at least 15 people in what police described as a "terrorist" attack.

The bomb, a timed device carrying one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of explosive, was wrapped in a shopping bag near a motorbike parking lot at Rang Mahal district in the heart of the city, police chief Javed Noor said.

"It was a terrorist activity meant to create widespread panic," he said.

Hospital officials said they were treating 15 people with serious wounds, mostly caused by shrapnel.

"We have admitted 11. Three people are in critical condition," Doctor Azhar Masood Bhatti of Mayo Hospital said.

"One of the wounded men lost both legs and is in a very serious condition."

Residents said people fled in panic after the bomb exploded with a powerful blast in the narrow lanes of the busy shopping area.

The explosion in the congested market area shattered showcases in several shops. Cosmetics and perfume bottles flew in different directions, a resident said, adding that most casualties were caused by flying glass, AFP reported.

A new wave of bomb blasts has gripped the country's populous Punjab Province in recent weeks.

Monday's bombing came three days after a bomb exploded in the industrial city of Gujranwala, in which a police constable was killed and two others were injured.

Another three people died in southwestern Quetta on the eve of the country's 54th independence anniversary last week, while the worst attack this year was in the Punjab city of Gujrat on August 11 where seven people were killed.

So far this year some 60 bombs have exploded across the country killing more 19 people and injuring around 100 others.

No group has claimed responsibility for the bombings, but the government has blamed Indian intelligence agents.

India denies the charges and blames Pakistan for what it calls where a Muslim rebellion has raged against Indian rule since 1989.

A powerful bomb explosion that killed 7 people, wounded few others in Gujrat, north of Lahore, Pakistan.Aug. 11, 2001.

A nurse helps an injured miner out of an ambulance at a Ukrainian hospital yard, Aug. 19, 2001.

Ethnic Albanian rebels walk through village of Sipkovica, some 40km west of Skopje, Macedonia, Aug. 20, 2001. NATO has said a lasting cease-fire must be in place before its troops can deploy to collect weaponsfrom the rebels forces.