Midnapore, April 10: A police team on the lookout for Naxalites last night recovered two powerful landmines planted on the road to a forest in Lalgarh, West Midnapore, where the rebels had triggered a blast last year.

The security personnel in search of CPI (Maoist) guerrillas had a close shave as minesweepers in front of their vehicle detected the explosives, weighing about 3 kg each.

The landmines in Naxalite-infested Karamsole rekindled memories of last October when six Eastern Frontier Rifles jawans were blown to smithereens as their vehicle rolled over landmines in Bankisole forest, about 18 km from last night?s spot.

Ajay Nand, the district superintendent of police, said the team had received a tip-off that a group of 55 Maoist guerrillas had taken refuge in the dense forest.

?According to our information, the guerrillas were armed with sophisticated weapons. We were expecting an encounter and had taken all necessary precautions. A minesweeper in front of the convoy detected the explosives around 10 pm,? Nand said.

The team from the Dharampur camp of the Indian Reserve Police found the landmines about 5 km from where they had started.

?As we approached the forest fringes, our minesweeper detected landmines connected with a long wire,? said the district police chief.

When the indicator on the minesweeper began flashing and the convoy ground to a halt, spotlights were lit. The uneven mud and the wire was easy to locate after that.

The two landmines were defused. The police said several gelatine sticks were also found in the area.

?This tactic used by the guerrillas is an old one. Once the police personnel scatter and become disoriented after a blast, they start firing from both flanks. Earlier, the guerrillas had killed 15 police and paramilitary personnel in three separate incidents by using the same tactics,? the superintendent said.

The police raided the forest areas of Karmashole, Purnapani, Tarki, Boxi, and Lakshmanpur in Lalgarh. But no arrests were made. It is suspected that the guerrillas had lured the force into a trap with false information.