IAF chopper flown back to Jagdalpur after repairs

"After completing the temporary repairing task of IAF helicopter Mi-17 (which was attacked by Maoists in Sukma district), it was flown back to Jagdalpur in the evening," Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Himanshu Gupta told PTI.

The chopper reached district headquarters of Jagdalpur at around 5:45 PM, he said, adding that about a dozen IAF engineers took about three days to make the helicopter fit for flying.

As a precautionary measure, security was heightened in nearly 11 helipad of the region in case of emergency landing, he said.

On January 18, Maoists had attacked on a Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) patrol during a road-opening task in the forests of Temelwada village under the Chintagufa police station limits of Sukma district, in which head constable Baisuram Mandavi was killed and platoon commander Nandkishore Bhadoriya was injured.

Later an IAF helicopter Mi-17 was sent on a casualty evacuation mission to retrieve them from Temelwada village.

When the chopper was landing to pick up the injured, Maoists fired at it and injured radio operator Yem Lal Sahu who was onboard.

After the attack, the chopper had to make a forced landing in the forests of the Chitagufa police station area, where the CRPF cordoned it off and rushed reinforcements to the area.