VIJAYAWADA: Maoists triggered a landmine targeting police combing party in an interior village of G Madugula Mandal of Visakhapatnam under the Andhra Odisha Border (AOB) region.
Though there were no casualties in the blast, a tribal man passing near the explosion place suffered minor injuries. Soon after the blast, police and Maoists were engaged in an exchange of fire.
According to information reaching here, Maoists planted the landmine targeting the under construction police outpost at interior Nurmathi village, some 40 km from G Madugula mandal headquarters.
Around 9 pm, a police combing party reached the place and seeing the police, the Maoists tried to flee.
Police chased the Maoists for some distance and as they reached the place where the landmine was planted, it was triggered but the police personnel escaped unhurt.
Police opened fire on the fleeing Maoists which was retaliated by the latter. The exchange of fire is on till last reports came in.
Police officials suspect that the Maoists triggered the landmine to stop the construction of the police outpost.
Additional reinforcements are rushed to the remote area, district police officials said.
The AOB and Visakhapatnam agency was witnessing an uneasy calm since the gunning down of TDP MLA Kideri Sarveswara Rao and former MLA Siveri Soma in September at Dumbriguda.