1 CRPF jawan killed, 5 injured in Naxal encounter

CHANDRAPUR/NAGPUR: A CRPF jawan was killed while five others were seriously injured in a fierce encounter with a Naxal dalam in the jungles of Khobramendha under Wadsa division of Gadchiroli on Tuesday afternoon. All five injured jawans have been rushed to Nagpur after preliminary treatment in Gadchiroli Civil Hospital.
Sources informed that a team of CRPF jawans attached to 191 CRPF battalion was on a search operation in the dense jungles of Khobramendha since the last two days.While security forces were passing under a hill, the lurking Naxals ambushed the jawans from higher altitude.
Having advantage of higher location, the Naxals caught the CRPF jawans off-guard, and six jawans caught in the open sustained bullet injuries during the exchange of fire. One of the injured jawans, identified as Mahendra Singh from Punjab, later died of his injuries.
The other five injured jawans were airlifted by the rescue team with the help a helicopter provided to Gadchiroli police. The injured CRPF jawans have been identified as Ashok Kaware (Bhandara), Arun Markande (Rahuri), Satish Shinde (Jalgaon), Rajesh Patyaliye (Gujarat) and Yogeshkumar Prasad (Delhi).
Sources claimed that none of the local policemen were accompanying the CRPF team to guide them in the dense jungle and difficult terrains of Khobramendha. Senior police officials confirmed incident and said that all the injured jawans have been rushed to Nagpur in helicopter for emergency treatment.