A fierce encounter between police and CPI-Maoist rebels took place near Dangra Pahad under Ghurabandha police station area in the naxal-infested Ghatshila sub-division early Tuesday morning.
The encounter began at 6 am as police and para-military forces, CoBRA jawans were busy in conducting a combing operation at Dangra Pahad where they had a two-hour-long encounter on Monday.
After the Monday encounter, the police had pressed choppers to air-drop CoBRA jawans at the site of encounter.
The police also conducted an air-surveillance around the Dangra Pahad and also pressed the CoBRA jawans to conduct a combing operation of the dense jungle. As the combing operation was going on, the Maoist rebels opened shots at the para-military forces, leading the latter to retaliate.
Significantly, senior SP, Anoop T Mathew himself conducted the combing operation of the Dangra Pahad, considered to be a rebel stronghold area.
Sources informed that a 15-member squad of CPI-Maoist squad of Kanhu Munda was camping at the top of Dangra Pahad on Independence Day. Acting on a tip off that the rebel squad was atop Dangra Pahad that a joint team of police and para-military forces had started searching for the rebels.
"We have been successful to bring Maoists on back foot. We roped in CoBRA jawans by air-dropping them in Ghurabandha as we had an information that the rebels must have hidden them in the foliage. Yesterday we had driven the rebels away from Dangra Pahad and adjoing Mahespur and Bakrakocha villages. But when the combing operation began at about 6 am today, the CoBRA jawans suddenly came under fire from rebels," Mathew.
The senior SP said during the one-hour-long encounter over 100 shots were fired by the police, but it could not be ascertained whether there was any casualty on the rebels' side. He said there was no casualty from the police and para-military side either.
Mathew said they have today seized more explosives from a hide-out near Dangra Pahad. He said food-grains and edible oils which they had seized from the rebels camp atop Dangra Pahad on Monday distributed among the villagers at Maheshpur and Bakrakocha, adding that the operation will continue.
The senior SP said they had pressed in two choppers for air-dropping over 125 personal of CoBRA from the CRPF's Mosabani camp. He said two tracker dogs from the Mosabani camp had also been air-lifted for the anti-insurgency operation in Ghurabandha.
The administration has increased police patrolling on the bordering areas connecting to West Bengal and has also deployed adequate number of paramilitary personnel on areas potential to rebels attack.
"The combing operation had begun here from wee hours of the day. The para-military forces were combing the area in jungle while carrying out the operation. As the forces were busing in search operation, they were suddenly sprayed with bullets, leading them to run for the cover. Soon after, the paramilitary forces had retaliated by returning the fire," said a police official.