Two CRPF personnel were seriously injured in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast on Tuesday evening in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district. The explosion occurred around 5 p.m. during a Road Security Operation (RSO) being conducted by the 229th battalion of CRPF between Timapur and Murdanda, under Awapalli police station limits.
Both injured jawans were initially rushed to the district hospital in Bijapur and later shifted to Raipur for advanced medical care, officials confirmed.
This incident marks yet another reminder of the persistent danger posed by Maoist insurgents in the region. Maoist groups frequently plant IEDs on remote, unpaved roads to ambush security forces and obstruct anti-Naxal campaigns deep within forest zones.
According to police data, a staggering 1,013 IEDs have been seized so far in 2024, with Bijapur accounting for over 70% of them (732 devices). However, despite this intensified crackdown, 12 security personnel have lost their lives and 46 have sustained injuries in IED-triggered blasts this year alone.
The violence continues to escalate. On June 9, Akash Girepunje, an Additional SP from nearby Sukma, was killed by an IED while inspecting a Maoist-damaged vehicle at a quarry. In January, eight jawans and a driver were killed in Kutru, Bijapur when their vehicle was destroyed by a hidden IED. March saw a narrow escape for another CRPF unit after an IED exploded just moments after they passed the same stretch in Madded.
The pattern of attacks underscores the lethal risk jawans face daily in India’s red corridor.