RAIPUR: Eight constables and a driver from Chhattisgarh’s District Reserve Guard (DRG) were killed on Monday afternoon when Maoists detonated a 70kg improvised explosive device (IED) in Bijapur district, located in the Bastar region.
This marks the deadliest Maoist attack since April 2023, when a similar IED explosion claimed the lives of 10 security personnel and their driver.
The Slain Officers Identified
The slain officers have been identified as Subarnath Yadav, Somdu Vetti, Budhram Korsa, Sudarhsham Vetti, Duma Madkami, Harish, Pandru Poyam, and Baman Sodi. The driver’s identity has not yet been confirmed.
Ambush Following a Successful Operation
The DRG team was ambushed while returning from a two-day operation in the dense forests of south Abujhmarh in Narayanpur district, where they had successfully neutralized five Maoist insurgents. One DRG head constable, Sannu Karam, was also killed during the operation. Among the Maoists killed, two were women.
“The DRG personnel were returning to Dantewada district in a Scorpio vehicle when the IED blast occurred near Ambeli-Karkeli villages,” said Bastar Range Inspector General (IG) P. Sundarraj. The force of the explosion was so intense that debris from the road shattered the windscreen of the following vehicle.
