Hunt resumes

Ranchi, April 15: West Singhbhum Police and CRPF personnel today embarked on a major offensive in the Saranda forests of West Singhbhum and stumbled upon a 40kg can bomb in the first hour of operations itself.

The can bomb, powerful enough to blow up a police vehicle or a mine-protected vehicle, was recovered between Chotanagra and Punga village, on a dirt tract the security personnel were negotiating on foot.

Confirming the recovery, state director general of police Neyaz Ahmed said the bomb was defused.

Speaking over telephone from the sal rich jungles of Saranda, West Singhbhum superintendent of police Akhilesh Kumar Jha said the police were also successful in destroying a Naxalite training camp near Baliba.

At least 20 CRPF companies led by DIG Bhanu Pratap Singh, district police personnel and Jha himself ventured into the jungles in the wee hours today for the first major offensive in Saranda after operations were launched in the state a couple of months ago.

DIG Singh, under whose command the operations are being carried out in Saranda, said it was the road opening party that first detected the can bomb. A bomb disposal squad was pressed into service to defuse the same.

“The operations would continue for at least the next two or three days. We have also pressed into service an armoured chopper made available to us by the Border Security Force,” said Singh, adding the chopper would provide air support to ground troops in case of any exigency.

The forces are expected to remain in the forests or base camps at nearby Kiriburu and other places for the next few days. Base camps are also located at Chotanagra and Baliba villages inside the jungles.

Saranda happens to be one of the operational areas of the Maoists out of five in the state, as identified by the Union home ministry. Though Saranda borders Orissa, CRPF DIG Alok Raj said it was not a joint operation with the neighbouring state.

Meanwhile, DGP Ahmed and other top policemen met Governor M.O.H. Farook, reportedly to discuss the Maoist issue. However, both Ahmed and principal secretary to governor Sudhir Tripathi were reluctant to provide any details, saying it was a “courtesy” call.