Naxalite attack claims 14 lives in Orrisa

Nayagarh, Feb 16: Situation continued to be tense in the district after 14 policemen were killed in a attack by hundreds of armed naxalities, including women cadres, on several police stations here late last night.

In a planned attack the ultras, carrying sophisticated weapons arrived in the district headquarter at about 2245 hours last night and captured the town and looted the district armory in no time. They asked the residents to remain indoor and simultaneously attacked the Nayagarh police station, the Police Training School, the District Armory and Police Reserve with bombs and grenade giving no time to a small police force to retaliate.

The naxalites also set fire to Nayagarh, Daspalla and Nuagaon police stations and looted the arms. They even barged into the district armory and police training school, hurled bombs and grenade and loaded the looted ammunition in a vehicle before fleeing into a dense forest nearby.

Assistant sub-inspector Dandapani Mishra was killed when they hurled grenade and opened fire at the Nayagarh police station.For more than two hours, the entire town was under the capture of the naxals, who fled much before an additional reinforcement rushed to the town from various places.

Panicked over the incident the people kept themselves confined to their houses fearing threat to their lives. The streets today wore a deserted look as the shops remained closed with several other financial and educational institutions.

Director General of Police Gopal Nanda and other senior police officials from Cuttack and Bhubaneswar arrived in the town in the late night and launced intensive combing operation to nab the ultras. The entire district has been sealed from all side and red alert been sounded in all the neighbouring districts, DGP Nanda said adding that a Special Operation Group (SOG) jawans have launced a massive combing operation.

The border with the Chhatishgarh and Andhra Pradesh has also been sealed to prevent the Naxalites fleeing to the neighbouring states, he informed.

Mr Nanda said Nayagarh district was not a naxalite dominated district adding that the attack was aimed at looting the district armory.

According to locals, the naxals also went round the streets shouting slogan on their victory over the attack on the police stations and district armory.

They also took a bus with them where the looted arms were loaded and fled from the spot, sources added. Only a handful police personnel present at the police station and district armory, failed to counter the attack as they started hurling bombs and firing indiscriminately.

A pall of gloom descended at the district headquarter hospital here, where the bodies of the police personnel were kept for the post mortem.

The scene inside the hospital was more touching with the relatives and the near and dear of the victims crying near the bodies.

This is a second such attack in the state. In 2004, hundreds of armed naxalites had attacked five police station in Koraput, killed several police personnel and looted the district armory.

UNI