Four securitymen killed as Naxals trigger blast in Gadchiroli

Police said four security personnel, including two CRPF men, were killed and two others injured in a landmine blast, on Monday evening in the remote parts of South Gadchiroli. The attack was carried out by Maoists.

Initial reports suggest that the Maoists blew off a landmine at Perimili village, 200 km from the district headquarters.

“All that we know so far, is that the land mine blast occurred at the market-place,” the public relations officer of Gadchiroli police Navnath Jagtap said.
The policemen had parked their jeep near the village market when the blast occured at 6.30 pm. Among the four killed are CRPF PI Nivrutti Yadav, CRPF constable Anand Gajage, and two PSIs of the Maharashtra police, Mahendra Kumar Nalkul and Shashikant More (in-charge, Perimili police post).

The two constables who were injured have been shifted to the district hospital. Since last year, it is the first time that the CRPF suffered casualties in anti-naxal operations in Gadchiroli.

A day earlier, Gadchiroli police had, in a joint operation with the CRPF, arrested 20 Maoists in connection with the way-laying of chemical-laden truck, a few months ago. Monday’s incident might have come in response to the recent arrests, a source said.

On Sunday, the Maoists killed two people in Saliltola and Mendhatola villages, Dhanora tehsil, suspecting them to be police informers.