A police officer was killed and several others were injured in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district early on Monday.
Additional Superintendent of Police Akash Rao Giripunje, who was posted at Konta division, was patrolling with other personnel on the Konta-Aerobora road near Dronda when he accidentally stepped on a pressure IED believed to have been planted by Maoists, an official said.
The patrolling was part of precautions taken ahead of the June 10 country-wide bandh call given by the banned (Maoist).
The officer was rushed to Konta hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries. Other officers and jawans who were with him are under treatment and are said to be out of danger.
This takes the total number of security personnel killed in Maoist-related incidents to 18 this year. The number of Maoists killed this year in encounters is 209 in Chhattisgarh, including 192 in the Bastar region. Last year, 219 Maoists were killed in Chhattisgarh, including 217 in the Bastar region.
