Maoists blow up track near Jharkhand-Odisha border, trains get additional security

RANCHI: Freight movement was disrupted for several hours on Saturday night after Maoists triggered an explosion on the railway track between Karampada and Rengda sidings under Chakradharpur Rail Division. The Jharkhand Police confirmed the explosion and subsequent damage. There has been information about the blowing up of railway tracks in Rourkela, Odisha. Jharkhand Police is on high alert due to the bandh. A special campaign is being carried out against Maoists across Jharkhand, said Jharkhand Police spokesperson and IG (Operations), Dr Michael Raj. Notably, the CPI (Maoist) is observing Shahid Diwas (Martyr Week) from July 28 to August 3 and has called for a bandh in five states, including Jharkhand, on August 3. The Maoists had also put up a banner on the railway line in this regard. Maoist pamphlets and posters were spotted at several locations, appealing to the people for 'public resistance against police repression. In the wake of the bandh called by Maoists, a large number of security forces have been deployed on the borders of Jharkhand and Odisha. The Jharkhand government has already issued an alert in this regard, and additional forces have been provided to the trains. The explosion took place shortly after midnight on Saturday, when Maoists targeted the railway track. The blast was of low intensity and resulted in partial damage, affecting only a concrete sleeper. The railway department and local administration responded swiftly to the incident. Meanwhile, in another incident early Sunday morning, a railway gangman was killed and another injured in an IED blast while inspecting the track near Bimalgarh railway station at the OdishaJharkhand border under the Chakradharpur Division. According to railway officials, gangmen Atua Oram and Budhua Munda were injured in the blast and rushed to Bimalgarh Hospital in Odisha. While Atua succumbed to his injuries on the way, Budhua is undergoing treatment and is in stable condition. Currently, Maoist activity in Jharkhand is largely confined to the Saranda forest, as they have been pushed out of other strongholds. According to an estimate, around 8590 Maoists are supposed to be hiding in the Saranda jungles, where they have planted thousands of IEDs, which have become a challenge for the security forces. A joint operation was launched in the Saranda and Kolhan forest regions in November 2022, based on intelligence inputs suggesting that senior Maoist leaders like Misir Besra and Patiram Majhi alias Anal Da were present in the area, which is considered strategically crucial. The incidents, which took place under the Chakradhapur Railway Division, once again suggest that Maoist organisations are still not eliminated in the bordering areas and they know how to make their presence on some select occasions.

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BHUBANESWAR: Two days after suspected Maoists hijacked and looted a truck laden with a huge cache of blasting explosives, the National Investigation Agency's (NIA) officers visited Rourkela on Thursday to probe the incident along with Odisha Police. An NIA team has visited Rourkela to investigate the incident. Preliminary probe suggests the left-wing extremists from Maoist hotbed of Saranda forest in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand were involved in the loot of the blasting explosives, western range DIG, Brijesh Rai told the mediapersons. DGP YB Khurania who visited Rourkela on Wednesday to take stock of the investigation, has directed the police to beef up the security at vulnerable stone quarries. Sources said he has also instructed the senior officers to conduct a security audit of the stone quarries in such locations. Besides this, Khurania has asked the police to verify the security arrangements at the forested stone quarry in Banko within K Balang police limits, from where at least eight armed persons hijacked the explosives-laden truck on Tuesday. The quarry is more than 90 km from Rourkela. After hijacking the explosives-laden truck at around 9.30 am on Tuesday, the armed persons drove the vehicle to a nearby forest. Another 10-15 persons waiting inside the forest looted at least 150 packets of explosives each weighing 15 to 25 kg. The empty vehicle was later found abandoned inside the forest and its driver was unhurt. Meanwhile, Rourkela police intensified combing operation along the Odisha-Jharkhand border. Senior officers IG (operations) Deepak Kumar, DIG (western range) Brijesh Kumar Rai and Sundargarh SP Pratyush Diwakar, also in charge of Rourkela are camping in the steel city.

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