DHAKA: Six jawans were killed on Sunday when Maoists blew up their vehicle with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Chhattisgarh of India, reports Hindustan Times quoting police.

DIG (Dantewada Range) Ratan Lal Dangi said the Maoists triggered the blast between Cholnar and Kirandul villages when a joint team of the Chhattisagarh Armed Force and the District Force, in an SUV, was escorting a vehicle carrying material for road construction work.

“6 jawans dead, 1 injured according to preliminary investigation. Search operation is being held by security forces. Blast could be of high intensity, but the exact details will come after the investigation,” news agency ANI quoted Sunder Raj P, DIG of Anti-Naxal Operation, saying.

Maoists also looted the weapons of the police personnel and that reinforcement was rushed to the spot soon after the incident, the DIG said further.

Road construction work is underway between Kirandul and Palnar villages in Dantewada.

Further details are awaited.

Earlier in April, security forces had killed eight Maoists, including five women, in a forest in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district. This followed a major operation in neighbouring Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli, which left 39 rebels dead.

BDST: 1528 HRS, MAY 20, 2018
SI