Four CRPF troopers killed in landmine blast
By IANSWednesday, May 19, 2010
KOLKATA - Four troopers of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were killed and two others injured when Maoist guerrillas blew up their patrol vehicle in the trouble-torn Lalgarh belt of West Bengal’s West Midnapore district Wednesday, police said.
The Maoists triggered the landmine blast between Pingboni and Ramgarh areas under Lalgarh police station, about 200 km west of Kolkata, on day-two of the 48-hour strike called by them in five states, calling for the withdrawal of the joint security operation against them by states and the central government.
Confirming the incident, Inspector General of Police (Western Range) Zulfiqar Hassan told IANS: “Four of the jawans died on the spot. Two others have been admitted at the West Midnapore district hospital in Midnapore town.”
The incident occurred when the troopers were patrolling a forested stretch. One of the injured was a deputy commandant of the CRPF, who had been posted in the area only recently.
The vehicle was totally wrecked in the blast, which occurred at 11.30 a.m.
The blast left a five-foot-deep crater on the road. A large team of joint security forces comprising paramilitary troopers and state armed policemen have been rushed to the spot.
The joint forces have been deployed in the area for over 11 months to flush out Maoist rebels who had earlier turned Lalgarh into a virtual free zone by torching police camps and driving out the civil administration for about seven months.
The Maoist rebels are also active in Bankura and Purulia districts of the state.
