The powerful land-mine blast resulted in the death of 15 police officers and a civilian driver, local media reported.
#Maharashtra: 15 security personnel martyred and a driver of a private vehicle killed in a high-intensity land-mine blast at Jambhulkheda, in Kurkheda taluka of #Gadchiroli district.
— All India Radio News (@airnewsalerts) 1 мая 2019 г.
According to Associated Press, the blast was triggered by Maoist rebels in the Gadchiroli area of Maharashtra state, when the vehicles were approaching the site.
READ MORE: Maoist Militants Attack Railway Station, Abduct People in Eastern India
The Maoists, widely known as the Naxalites or the Naxals, have been fighting the Indian government since the 1960s. They are radical left-wing communists identifying with Marxism who conduct guerrilla warfare within some of India's densest forests, targeting security forces and government officials. They currently operate in a number of central and eastern states, including Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha.
