Naxal ambush: How a ditch saved the life of two DD journalists

The two Doordarshan crew members, who survived the volley of bullets during Tuesday's naxal attack in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh, were saved because of a ditch.

At around 11 am, around 100 naxals ambushed a security patrol party near Nilawaya village, around 450 kms from here, the police said.

A three-member team of Doordarshan, travelling for election-related news coverage, was caught in the cross-fire.

Two policemen and a cameraman of Doordarshan Achyutanand Sahu were killed in the ambush.

"We all were on three bikes and he (slain cameraman) was riding the first one. We suddenly heard firing and saw him collapsing on bike," Mor Mukt Sharma, Light Assistant of DD News, said while recounting the horrific scene.

"We immediately realised that it was a naxal attack and hid behind a tree. As bullets kept flying, we saw a ditch nearby and crawled into it. That is how we escaped death," he added.