Explosives Seized in Joint Operation Against Maoists in Odisha

Bhubaneswar, Jun 4 (PTI) - In a significant breakthrough, security forces have recovered nearly 1 ton of explosives, previously seized by Maoists from near a stone quarry in Odisha's Sundergarh district, an official disclosed on Wednesday.

A joint operation was launched by the Odisha Police, along with the CRPF, Jharkhand Jaguar, the Special Operations Group (SOG), and the elite COBRA unit, targeting the Saranda forest in Jharkhand. The move came in response to Maoists looting approximately 4 tons of explosives, predominantly gelatin, on May 27.

"The security personnel managed to recover an additional 1,000 kg of explosives during the operation conducted on Tuesday night," stated Brijesh Rai, DIG (Western Range) to PTI. On Monday, a further 2.5 tons of explosives were retrieved, he reported.

Earlier, around 157 kg of explosives had been recovered, another official noted. The explosives were found to be buried deep within the dense forest area.

It was reported that a group of 25-30 Maoists had intercepted a truck that was transporting explosives to the Banko stone quarry in the K Balang area.

Up until now, close to 3.6 tons of explosives have been successfully recovered, the official mentioned. The search operation remains active in the dense forests of neighboring Jharkhand, according to Rai.

In a related development, the Odisha Police's SIT arrested Sraban Agarwal, the owner of an explosive warehouse, and the truck driver on Tuesday.