RAIPUR: Two personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were injured, one of them critically, in a pressure improvised explosive device (IED) blast planted by Maoists in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district, about 450 km south of Raipur, on Thursday.
The explosion occurred along the Barsur route, about 40 km from the district headquarters, according to police.
“A CRPF team was engaged in a demining operation this morning in the region. Two jawans were injured in the pressure blast of an IED planted by Maoists. The condition of one of the jawans is stated to be critical and he is likely to be taken to Raipur for immediate medical attention. The troops continuously carry out demining exercises to track down IEDs and get rid of them,” Gaurav Rai, Dantewada district police chief, told TNIE.
In guerrilla warfare, an IED is considered the easiest and deadliest weapon for Maoists, who are pushed on the back foot, to target security forces or other vulnerable options.
Law enforcement agencies in the conflict-ridden Bastar zone stated that although Maoist-related violence has shown a declining trend, the strenuous challenge of effectively countering IED threats continues to persist in operations across south Chhattisgarh.
Even the United Nations has cited IEDs as a grave worldwide threat.