RAIPUR/BIJAPUR: At least 11 security personnel were injured when Maoists triggered multiple IED blasts in the Karregutta Hills area near the Bijapur-Telangana border in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region, police officials said on Monday.
The serial explosions on Sunday targeted a joint anti-Naxal operation team comprising personnel from the District Reserve Guard (DRG) of Chhattisgarh Police and the elite CoBRA unit of the CRPF.
Reports confirm that ten of the injured belong to the DRG, while one is from CoBRA. All the personnel were promptly evacuated and admitted to hospitals, where their conditions are reported as stable following medical treatment.
The blasts occurred in quick succession during the search operation in the dense, hilly terrain of Karregutta, police insiders told IANS, evading to provide details of the incidents. The police insiders said detailed information will be issued later.
The Karregutta Hills have long been regarded as a major stronghold and safe haven for Maoists. The first explosion took place on Sunday morning, followed by additional detonations through the afternoon, designed to inflict casualties and spread terror just before the national festival on January 26.
Security forces immediately launched a large-scale search and recovery operation in the aftermath. Teams are combing the area to locate and defuse remaining IEDs planted by the insurgents.
This comes amid intensified anti-Maoist efforts in southern Chhattisgarh, where coordinated operations by central and state forces have been stepping up pressure on Naxal groups.
The Karregutta Hills, straddling the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border, have witnessed heightened activity in recent times, including prior encounters and the establishment of new security camps in surrounding regions to extend administrative reach.
The latest IED attacks appear aimed at disrupting these gains and intimidating forces ahead of Republic Day celebrations, which have seen symbolic flag-hoistings in previously inaccessible villages, police sources said. On the other hand, the police department has released a statement that the flag-unfurling ceremony took place on Republic Day 2026.
The security forces achieved a significant symbolic victory by unfurling the national Tricolour at a newly established security camp in the Karregutta Hills, a former Maoist stronghold in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.
Situated at an altitude of approximately 5,000 feet, the hill had long served as a key sanctuary for Naxalites in the Bastar region. The unfurling of the flag in this high-altitude Maoist core zone represented not just a ceremonial act but a powerful assertion of India's sovereignty and the triumph of democracy over violence, the statement said.
The Karregutta Hills, rising steeply along the Chhattisgarh-Telangana border, had been a focal point of large-scale anti-Maoist drives that resulted in significant setbacks for insurgent groups.