Maoists kill 7 policemen in Chhattisgarh, call for general strike

Seven policemen were killed in a Maoist rebel landmine blast in Chhattisgarh, police said on Wednesday, as the insurgents called for a 48-hour strike in six states across the country.

The Maoists are active in the country's poor, rural areas, and widespread violence in mineral-rich eastern districts has worried investors and disrupted mining and rail transport.

The landmine attack, the latest salvo in a four-decades long insurgency that has killed thousands, came late on Tuesday hours after the rebels called for a two-day general strike from May 21 to demand the release of three of their leaders.

"It was a powerful blast that ripped the roof off a vehicle carrying paramilitary personnel. Five men of the CRPF (federal police) second battalion were killed on the spot and two died a few hours later," district police chief Ankit Garg told Reuters.

Last April, the government faced strong criticism that security forces were ill-prepared to deal with the insurgent threat after 75 police were killed in an ambush in Chhattisgarh that led to the home minister tendering his resignation.

A recent crackdown on rebel-controlled areas has seen a decrease in attacks, raising hopes the government was winning the battle against what the prime minister has described as India's biggest internal security threat.

The Maoists' violent campaign against the government began as a peasant revolt in the late 1960s. The rebels say they are fighting for the rights of the poor and the disenfranchised.