ROURKELA: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Rourkela police on Sunday recovered two explosives-laden trucks parked suspiciously near a fuel station at Balughat in RN Pali here for the last two days.
The recovery comes close on the heels of the loot of huge quantity of blasting explosives by Maoists from Banko forest in K Balang on May 27. The source of the explosives looted by Maoists and the explosives seized on Sunday has been traced to the same warehouse in Bargaon block of Sundargarh district. The warehouse has been sealed from May 28.
Sources said about 116 packets of gelatine sticks, 416 detonators and 750 metre of charging electric wires were recovered from the two trucks. Police said it is suspected that owner of the warehouse Shraban Agarwal is involved in illegal supply of explosives to stone quarries and mines for monetary gain.
A top police officer said during investigation, the SIT learnt that on May 27, three trucks laden with explosives had come out of the warehouse. While one truck was looted by the Maoists, the two others were kept hidden. During interrogation in the K Balang case, the warehouse owner told police that explosives loaded in the two trucks were delivered to clients.
The officer said it appears that the explosives in the two trucks were actually not delivered and were kept hidden elsewhere before being found near the filling station at Balughat.
Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani said investigation is underway to ascertain if four tonne of explosives were actually looted by the Maoists as claimed by Agarwal and the truck driver. Their claim is under suspicion as the driver failed to produce the documents stating that the Maoists took those away.
Wadhwani said around 180 to 200 explosive packets were found in the two trucks. Verification of the seizures with the help of GST and mining officials is underway.
DIG (Western Range) Brijesh Kumar Rai said, “Agarwal has one explosive licence in his name and another in his wife’s name, and is operating from the same warehouse in Bargaon. Detailed investigation of the explosive stocks procured and delivered by him is underway.”
On May 27, armed Maoists hijacked an explosives-laden truck from near the Banko stone quarry. The rebels drove the vehicle about one km inside the forest before decamping with the explosive packets, mostly blasting gelatine sticks. The site of the loot was hardly two km from the Maoist den of Saranda forest in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand.
Subsequently on Friday, security forces of Odisha and Jharkhand recovered a major portion of the looted explosives from Tirilposh in Saranda forest following an exchange of fire with the Maoists.