Ranibodli: Relatives look for their beloved's remains

Ranibodli, Chhattisgarh, Mar 16 (UNI) Amidst a multitude of corpses, a little girl innocently touched her father's body.

She was unaware of the reason for her mother's wails.

An old man holding his grandchild, meanwhile, looked for his young son's remains.

They were among several grieving relatives at this Dantewada district village where 55 security personnel, including 39 tribal youth working as special police officers (SPOs), were killed when Maoist rebels raided a police camp in the pre-dawn hours yesterday.

The tribals were among more than 4,000 adivasi youth, in the 18-25 age-group, who had been appointed SPOs under the Police Act to scout the security forces in the sprawling shrub forests and hilly terrain of southern Bastar. A total of more than 100 SPOs have been killed by naxals thus far.

The base camp was located in one portion of an Ashram school building. Thirty female students, who were present at the time of the attack, were still terrorised. The 10 to 11-year-old girls were locked in a room by the attackers.

The dead SPOs hailed from Ranibodli, Todka, Tadmer, Dubeli, Sagmeta, Bhajjimarka, Mangarpeta and Ambeli villages that were now silent as residents had sought refuge in a camp in Kutru Police Station limits.

Revenge and pain were visible in the eyes of Ambeli's Aamti Bai who first lost her husband and now her son in naxal violence. ''My son became an SPO to avenge his father but now he has also fallen victim,'' she lamented.

Ranibodli's Madwi Hada lost both her sons Paklu and Gangdu.

''Part of the Ashram school was a hostel. Some personnel rushed to that area and were consequently saved,'' Dantewada District Collector K R Pisda told UNI.

''The girls huddled under cots while the attack progressed. The incident and the sight of the corpses have shocked them into silence.

They have been taken to the nearby Somanpalli Hostel,'' said Ashram Superintendent Kamla Madawi.

UNI