Maoist attack toll rises to four in mine blast
Belpahari (West Bengal), Feb 27: With one more security personnel succumbing to his injuries late last night (Feb 26, 2006) , the toll in yesterday's land mine blast by Maoist guerillas rose to four today (Feb 27, 2006).
At least seven others, who were seriously injured, are still fighting for their lives in Belpahari and Jhargram hospitals in West Midnapore district.
Meanwhile, following intensive night-long combing operation in and around the spot the police has recovered about 290 feet long live wire used by the Maoists for trigerring the landmine and six battery shells from a distance of about 200 feet besides some water bottles and left out food packets at Nakrajhora, about 10 km from here.
Three CRPF jawans were killed on the spot and eight others injured when the suspected Maoist guerillas blew up the last vehicle of a police convoy by triggerred a landmine near cuvert from a distance last evening.
West Midnapore district Superintendent of Police Ajay Kumar Nanda, who was also travelling in another car of the same convoy, however, had a miraculous escape, as the vehicle had already crossed the spot before the landmine was trigerred by the guerillas.
Deputy Superintendent of Police West Range, Banibrata Basu, who rushed to the spot immediately after the incident along with the CRPF Assistant Commandant Biplab Mondal, said the blast was so powerful that the entire vehicle was destroyed and severed limbs of the victims strewned the entire area and upto a distance of more than 50 feet.
Claiming that morale of the security forces posted in the district was unaffected, they said, however, the search operation was still continuing though none had so far been arrested.
Refusing to divulge more about the inquiry, Mr Basu said preliminary investigations indicated tha not more than two guerillas were involved in the operation following which they might have escaped deep inside the jungle.
UNI