RAIPUR: A police constable was injured when a pressure bomb laid by Naxals exploded in the insurgency-hit Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh today, police said.
The incident occurred at Bijapur valley, around five km from Bijapur town towards Bhopalpattanam, when a squad of security personnel was patrolling to ensure security to an under-construction road, Bijapur Additional Superintendent of Police Indira Kalyan Elesela told PTI. Security forces were tasked to protect the construction work of a road on Bijpaur-Bhopalpattanm route.
"During patrolling, a constable accidentally came in contact with a pressure bomb planted by the Maoists on a side of the road," the ASP said. Following the blast, the rebels also opened fire on security personnel. However, they fled from the spot after the security personnel returned the fire, he added.
Constable Hariram Patra has sustained injuries in the blast and was airlifted to Raipur for treatment, the ASP said. Meanwhile, a combing operation has been launched in the region to nab the attackers, he added. In a separate incident, security forces have recovered weapons and Maoist-related materials after a gun-battle with ultras in Farsegarh police station area of the district.
"When the police team reached Farsegarh forest while carrying out a search operation, a group of armed rebels opened indiscriminate firing on them, prompting security personnel to retaliate," he said. After the ensuing gun battle that lasted for around half-an-hour, rebels escaped into dense forests.
Later, a 12-bore gun, a country-made pistol and a cache of Naxal-related materials were recovered from the spot, he added.