RAYAGADA: Maoists torched several vehicles being used in road construction work at the Niyamgiri hills of Rayagada district on Saturday night. As per reports, a group of about 15 armed Naxals reached the construction camp of a contractor in Naringtola village within Kalyansinghpur police limits late in the night. The rebels asked the construction camp staff to vacate the place before pouring fuel on the vehicles stationed at the place and setting those on fire. They torched a JCB, a multi utility vehicle, four tractors and as many bikes worth around `65 lakhs.
Sources said the Naxals have been opposing the road construction work on the stretch of 15.7 kms from Gundriguda to Lakhapadara. Under the aegis of CPI (Maoists) Area Committee of Rayagada, the ultras had pasted some posters near the camp area protesting the construction and widening work on the road.
Following the incident, panic gripped Parshalli area of Kalyansinghpur block. Before the panchayat elections in February 2017, the Maoists had torched the vehicles of a contractor opposing road construction work on a stretch of about five kms from Parshalli to Gumma. Since then, construction work on the road has been stalled.
Saturday’s incident took place in an area which is only eight kms from the CRPF camp and Kalyansinghpur police station, the sources said. One Akshya Kumar Padhi has lodged an FIR with Kalyansinghpur police regarding the incident.
Police suspect the involvement of secretary of Niyamgiri Rayagada area committee Bauri Bandhu Sethy (Bunty) in this incident.
The Dongria Kondhs of Niyamgiri areas have been opposing widening of roads in the hills. Instead, they want the roads to be five feet wide in the area. The Naxals have been making the same demand through the posters which surfaced earlier in the Niyamgiri hills several times in the past.