RAIPUR: In the second major attack on security forces in Bastar in the past 10 days, at least five jaws were killed and a dozen wounded in a Maoist ambush ChhattisgarhThe restless district of Bijapur on Saturday.
On Friday, more than 400 security staff from CoBRA, STF, DRG and CRPF launched a joint operation. On Saturday afternoon, some members of the staff were attacked.
The Maoists They are believed to have suffered heavy casualties, the Chhhattisgarh interior minister said, adding that both sides used mortars and sophisticated weapons in the clash.
According to a senior police officer, the casualty figures on both sides may increase as meeting it is still found in the forests of the Tarren region on the border of Sukma and Bijapur, about 400 km from Raipur.
Three army helicopters have been deployed to carry all wounded security personnel to Raipur. Police say they have found the body of a Maoist woman and there are indications that many more insurgents have been killed, as there are reports of villagers being forced to evacuate the bodies from the battle zone.
Among those martyred among the forces are two baboons each from the District Reserve Guards (DRG) and the Bastariya Battalion and a CoBRA commando.
It could turn out to be one of the biggest clashes in the jungles of Bastar. Chhattisgarh Interior Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu said.
One officer said: “There was information that a large number of Maoists were having a meeting in the forest with senior officials. Based on these inputs, an operation was planned. The region is a stronghold of the senior Maoist commander Hidma of Battalion No. 1 ”.
Sahu said: “Our forces continuously raid the Maoist camps and five groups of security personnel participated in the operation on the night of April 2.”
Around 12 pm on Saturday, a group of security personnel were ambushed by Maoists deep in a forest in Jagargunda, on the Sukma-Bijapur border. The shooting lasted for more than three hours, according to a police statement.
The Interior Minister said that many Maoists are believed to have been killed and injured. “This will be confirmed once the region is properly recorded, which could not be done due to darkness. We have received input that the Maoists were asking the villagers to bring back wounded paintings and corpses, indicating that the Maoists also suffered heavy losses. The reinforcements are trying to make contact with the security personnel who are scattered in various corners of the forest, ”Sahu said.
Chhattisgarh Prime Minister Bhupesh Baghel condemned the attack and expressed regret at the martyrdom of the Jawans. “I express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families. Our jaws have shown extreme courage. I assure you that their sacrifice will not be in vain and operations against the Naxalites will be intensified, ”Baghel said, adding that the wounded will receive the best treatment.
Reinforcements were dispatched to the battle zone and ambulances, helicopters, and other logistics were organized to handle the aftermath of the ambush.
Bastar Range IG P Sundarraj said detailed information will be received once security personnel are contacted or return to base. “The rescue operation is taking place at the scene,” he said.
The staff had departed from the Tarrem, Usoor, Pamed camps in the Bijapur district and Minpa and Narsapuram in the Sukma district.
“We have a clear strategy against the Maoists. The development and progress of Bastar will continue. In the last two and a half years, we have reduced the Maoist hotbeds into little patches. Saturday’s operation was aimed at hitting one of its floodlights. We will continue to bring development to Bastar and eliminate the Maoists, ”Sahu said.
The ambush comes 10 days after five DRG members were killed and 15 injured in a Maoist improvised explosive device blast in Narayanpur district.
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