Forester shot dead, forest beat torched in Orissa

Baripada, May 9 (UNI) Armed Maoist activists, including some women, raided the Sergada beat house, set it ablaze and shot dead a forester in the wee hours today.

Official sources said more than 25 armed Maoists swooped down on the forest beat under Rairangpur forest range and damaged forester Rabindra Nath Patra's motor cycle, parked near the beat house.

They then took Mr Patra to Kundadihi village, nearly 1.5 km away from the beat house and shot him from a close range near his left ear, official sources said.

The Maoists left some posters near the mortal remains of Mr Patra, who was the first forest official to have been killed by the Maoists in Mayurbhanj district.

A team of Special Operation Group(SOG) officials rushed to the spot and launched intensive combing operation in and around the spot to nab the Maoists involved in the gruesome killing of the forester.

Mayurbhanj Superintendent of Police, Sanjoy Kumar Singh and District Collector Suresh Kumar Vashishth had rushed to the spot this morning along with the Conservator of Forest, Baripada Circle, Debabrata Swain and Rairangpur division DFO Bijoy Kumar Parida.

The tragic incident, first of its kind in Mayurbhanj district, has cast pall of gloom amongst the forest officials and triggered a sense of insecurity among officials stationed in the Maoist-dominated area.

Mayurbhanj district unit of the Orissa State Non-Gazetted Forest Services Association president Sanyasi Behera today demanded that the state government should sanction an ex-gratia of Rs ten lakh to the next of kins of the deceased forester.

He also urged the government to provide adequate protection to the forest officials working in the Maoist-dominated areas, including densely forest region of Simlipal National Park.

UNI