Bhubaneswar, Feb 16 ( Odisha.in) Striking in a big way for the first time in coastal Orissa, Naxalites killed 15 people, including 14 policemen, besides injuring 16 others and looting the district armoury at Nayagarh, located at a distance of about 100 kms from Bhubaneswar, after virtually laying siege to the town, police said on Saturday.
In a daring and meticulously planned attack late last night, the Naxals targetted a police training school, armoury and a police station in Nayagarh and another police station at Daspalla.A huge amount of arms and ammunition was taken away in a truck and a bus they had hijacked, the police said.
A group of over 100 naxals, including women cadre, entered the district town in trucks and Bolero vehicles , with bombs and firearms carried out the attack killing 13 police personnel, including two women, and a civilian besides causing injuries to 16 persons.
While 10 police personnel were killed at the Police Training School , armoury and Nayagarh police station, a civilian caught in crossfire died at Daspalla.
Two police personnel were shot dead by the Naxalites while they were returning after carrying out the operation at Mahipur police outpost.One injured policemen succumbed to his wounds on Saturday.
Five of the injured were sent to SCB medical college hospital at Cuttack and the rest admitted to hospitals here and at Daspalla, the police said.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today visited the armoury and the police training school , District Headquarters Hospital at Nayagarh.Landmines laid by the naxalites at Majuriapali near here also caused injuries to one person early today.
Chief Minister announced Rs 10 lakh gratitious relief to the family of each deceased police personnel and Rs 2 lakhs to the next of kin of the civilian.
He also announced that the Government would provide free treatment to all the injured persons and job for one family members of each family.
The attack, the first of its kind in coastal Orissa at a place around 100 km from the state capital, was launched around 11 pm and continued up to past midnight.
The district armory and Police Training School were virtually emptied by the maoists, the police said.
Police personnel in strength have been deployed in the district and its borders sealed, while efforts were on to trace the ultras who were believed to have left in two separate directions, the police said.
Though Nayagarh district had been unaffected by the naxal menace, the ultras are active in neighbouring Gajapati and parts of Kandhamal district. Famous Naxal leader Sabyasachi Panda belongs to neighbouring Ranpur area.
In a similar attack in 2005 at the district headquarter town of Koraput, naxalites had looted a large quantity of arms and ammunition from the police armoury.
Before launching the attack, the ultras which included a number of women cadres, asked the people to stay indoors, making it clear that their intention was to carry away arms and ammunition.
Odisha.in