Six CRPF men injured in gun-battle with naxals in Chhattisgarh

RAIPUR: Six CRPF personnel, including a sub-inspector, were injured in a gun-battle between security forces and Maoists in the insurgency-hit Sukma district in Chhattisgarh today, police said.

"The face-off occurred in the restive forests under the Chintagufa police station limits when a joint squad of CRPF, its elite battalion-CoBRA (Compact Battalion for Resolute Action) and district force were carrying out an anti-naxal operation this evening," Sukma Superintendent of Police D Shrawan told PTI.

Inspector General (IG) of CRPF H S Sidhu was leading the operation.

When the security forces were cordoning off a restive patch of Chintagufa, a group of armed Naxal cadres opened indiscriminate firing on them following which they retaliated, the SP said.

"Six personnel belonging to CRPF and CoBRA battalions sustained bullet injuries in the incident and are being airlifted to Raipur for treatment," Shrawan said.

Vipin Kumar, Sub Inspector of CRPF's 150 battalion, constables Madhukar Rathore and Surendra Bathi of the same unit, constables Chandrashekar and Manoj Kumar Gonde of 206 CoBRA battalion and constable Rupak Rawat, posted as gunman of the IG, were injured in the incident, the SP said.

Further details are awaited as the operation is still underway in the region, located around 450 kms from the state capital, he added.