Bhubaneswar( Agency) : In a major breakthrough in the ongoing operation against Maoist-linked activities, security forces have recovered 700 kilograms of explosive materials from the Saranda forest located near the Odisha-Jharkhand border.
The recovery was made during an intensive combing operation on Wednesday, days after a large cache of explosives was looted by Maoists in Sundargarh district.
The joint operation was carried out by personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Special Operations Group (SOG), and the elite COBRA unit. Acting on specific intelligence inputs, the forces conducted a coordinated sweep of the dense forest region, leading to a significant seizure.
Earlier, the security forces had recovered 2.5 tonnes of explosives in the Saranda forest. The explosives were part of a cache looted by Maoists on May 27 from a stone quarry in Sundargarh district.
The armed Maoist squad had intercepted an explosive-laden truck which was on the way to a quarry and diverted it into the dense Saranda forest.
“Out of the 5 tonnes of explosives that were looted, 3.8 tonnes have been recovered. The operation, which began on the night of May 27, is underway. An SIT (Special Investigation Team) led by an Additional SP is continuing the investigation. Evidence has been found confirming Maoist involvement in the explosives loot case,” said Odisha DGP YB Khurania.
