Chhattisgarh Maoist Blast: Naxals planted IED beneath road through 'foxhole mechanism'

The Bastar Police revealed that the blast that resulted in the death of 10 DRG personnel and a civilian was triggered by an IED that was planted underneath the road through foxhole mechanism.

Raipur: In a new revelation to the Dantewada blast in which 10 DRG (District Reserve Guard) jawans were killed, the Bastar police said that the powerful Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was planted beneath the road a few months back by digging a tunnel through 'foxhole mechanism'. A foxhole is a hole dug by soldiers to shelter themselves from the enemy and from which they can fire.

Speaking to ANI, the police said, "De-mining is done on the said road from time to time. Prima-facie it appears that the IED was planted far below the road through 'foxhole mechanism' (a style of digging tunnel) due to which it could not be detected during the de-mining exercise."

As per preliminary investigation, the IED was planted around one-and-half or two months back by digging a tunnel and the wire connected to it was hidden 2-3 inches beneath the ground. The Bastar police has registered an offence against naxal cadres based on the findings of the investigation.

On Wednesday, 10 District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel and a civilian were killed in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada in an IED blast. The DRG personnel were traveling in a private rented van along with a driver near Aranpur. Visuals from the attack site show that a deep crater, around 10 feet deep was formed as a result of the blast which suggests the high amount of explosives used.

The jawans had gone to Aranpur after getting inputs about the presence of Maoists there. The blast took place when they were returning from the area. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel offered condolences to the families of the martyred policemen. He visited the memorial service of the jawans on Thursday and lent his shoulder to carry the mortal remains of one of the DRG personnel killed in the attack.

"The sacrifice of the jawans will not go in vain," the Chief Minister said adding that the fight against Naxalites will be fought with more determination. Baghel held a high-level meeting to chalk out a comprehensive strategy to eliminate Naxalism.