Maoists bomb railway tracks, school building in Jharkhand

Maoists today blew up railway tracks at two places in Jharkhand, disrupting train services besides bombing a school on the third day of their 72-hour shutdown in five naxal-hit states to protest the
Centre's proposed offensive against them.

The incidents came hours ahead of the meeting of chief ministers of naxal-affected states convened by home minister P Chidambaram in Kolkata.

Maoists blew up tracks under Nimiaghat police station in Giridh district in the wee hours, superintendent of police, Ravi Kant Dhan said.

"Trains on this section have been stopped on both upand down lines," Parasnath station superintendent Mritunjaya Kumar said, adding a couple of deafening explosions were heard around 2 am.

The Maoists also triggered blasts on tracks between Karmabad and Choudhary Bandh railway stations in Giridih district, blowing up a three-metre stretch of railway track, the police said.

Dhanbad divisional railway manager, S Upadhaya, said several trains have been stopped at Gaya and Mughalsarai following the damage to the tracks.

Yesterday, Maoists blew up railway tracks in Orissa and Bihar.

Maoists have blown up a high school building in Khunti district of Jharkhand on the last day of their 72-hour shutdown.

A group of armed Maoists reached the Project High School late last night at Sodeh village, packed explosives before blowing up the two-storey building, superintendent of police, AB Minz told newsmen here today.

There was no casualty.

The school was functioning in the old building after
the Moaists had blasted the new structure in November last
year.