In a devastating attack, eight personnel from the District Reserve Guard (DRG) and a civilian driver were killed when Maoists detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district on Monday. The incident marks the first Maoist strike in 2025 and the largest in the state in two years.
The blast occurred near Ambeli village under the Kutru police station area around 2:15 p.m., targeting a vehicle returning from a three-day anti-Maoist operation. Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P confirmed, “The explosion left no survivors in the vehicle.”
The DRG, a unit drawn from local tribal populations and surrendered Maoists, had recently participated in an operation that killed five Maoists but also claimed the life of one DRG head constable.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said, “Maoists are frustrated with the ongoing counter-insurgency operations. The martyrdom of the jawans will not go in vain.”
The attack follows a pattern of previous IED incidents in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, which has seen multiple such strikes on security forces over the years. In April 2023, a similar explosion killed ten police personnel and a civilian driver in the neighboring Dantewada district.
