The device, weighing five kg, was found buried near a bridge on Kohka River.
Acting on a tip-off, security forces had launched an anti-Maoist operationin Kohka region, around 120 km from here, a senior police official said.
"When they were cordoning off an area near the bridge on Kohka river, they spotted theIEDplaced in a steel container," he said.
The security forces were its target, he added.