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A day after killing seven policemen in an ambush in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district, the Naxals on Sunday allegedly set ablaze at least 17 vehicles engaged in mining work in insurgency-hit Kanker district, police said.
No one was hurt in the incident, they said.
A group of armed Naxals raided the Barbaspur iron ore mining site under the limits of Korar police station and after threatening the labourers, they torched 17 vehicles engaged in mining work, Kanker Superintendent of Police Jitendera Singh Meena told PTI.
After torching the vehicles, the Maoists fled into the forest, he said.
On getting information about the incident, a police team was immediately rushed to the spot which found the vehicles, including trucks, mining machineries and JCB, burnt, he said.
A search operation has been launched in the region to nab the ultras involved in the incident, the SP added.
The extremists are reportedly opposing iron ore mining in the area being done by Neco Jayaswal Company.
Notably, four officials of Neco Jayaswal company, including a general manager, were kidnapped on April 1 by Naxals from a separate iron ore reserve -- Chargaon in Kanker district. However, they were later released the same day.
On Saturday, seven STF personnel were killed and ten others injured when Naxals ambushed them in the forests of Pidmel village under Polampalli police station limits of Sukma district, around 450 km from the state capital Raipur. The deceased included a platoon commander-ranked officer.
Meanwhile, security forces operating in ten Naxal-affected states have been asked to maintain a high degree of "alert" in view of violent counter-offensive launched by the left wing extremists.
Official sources said the Naxals had launched their Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign in late March in these areas.
The TCOC is the about 3-4 months time period beginning March-April when armed Naxal cadres undertake special violent action against security forces and others to gain ground, re-group and strategise their plan of action before the onset of summer.
"The forces were put on alert in March when the annual TCOC begins. But, with this major attack on forces in Chhattisgarh on Saturday, the alert has been re-issued and reinforced to the forces," sources in the security establishment said.
CRPF Special Director General (Operations) K Durga Prasad on Sunday rushed to Chhattisgarh's capital Raipur to review security arrangements.
They said under the new instructions, the Central Reserve Police Force, other paramilitary forces and state police units have been asked to deploy better and clever strategies to ensure that the Naxals are not able to spring any surprise.
"It includes fortifying security forces' camps, undertaking special intelligence-based operations and ensuring covert tactics while operations are undertaken in the ten Naxal-affected states of the country," they said.
The forces have also been asked not to deploy large contingents in the forests as during summers the jungles get de-foliated and hence they are visible from a long distance, inviting attacks.
Under the latest instructions, the CRPF and other state police forces have been asked to take the help of the newly operationalised Unmaned Aerial Vehicles base from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh to conduct reconnaissance of target areas.