Jamshedpur: A seven-year-old girl lost her life, and her aunt sustained injuries in an IED explosion triggered by Maoists in the Saranda Forest of Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district on Tuesday.
The tragic incident occurred when the girl accidentally stepped on the pressure-triggered explosive while she, her mother, her aunt, and another individual were collecting firewood in the Tirilposi-Thalkobad stretch of the forest, according to local sources.
“The IED was planted by Maoists to target security forces,” stated Superintendent of Police Ashutosh Shekhar.
The child suffered severe injuries to both legs and was rushed by locals to the Manoharpur Community Health Centre, where she was declared dead.
Police revealed that four IEDs had been recovered from forested areas under Jaraikela, Tonto, and Chotanagra police station limits between December 10 and January 5. The use of such explosives underscores the continued threat posed by Maoist insurgents in the region.
