Naxals damage culvert, torch trucks in Chhattisgarh

Naxalswentona rampagein parts of Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Bastar region damaging a culvert on national highway and torching trucks to ensure that their day-long bandh today was successful.
"Naxals executed three incidents at separate places last night in Sukma district to enforce their shutdown call for today," a senior police official told PTI.
The maoists blew up an under-construction culvert near Pedakurti village under Dornapal police station limits on NH- 30 between Sukma town and Konta, he said.
However, vehicular movement on the route was unaffected, he added.
In the second incident, maoists damaged a slurry pipeline belonging to a private steel company in Gadiras area of the district bordering Dantewada district, he said.

The pipeline was constructed by the steel company to transport iron from Bailadila iron ore mines (Dantewada) in the slurry form to its plant in Visakhapatnam, he said.

Soon after being informed, security forces were sent to the spot, the officer said.
Maintenance work was underway and supply will be restored soon, the official said.
In another incident, two trucks were set ablaze by naxals in Kukanar police station of the district, he added.
"No incident was reported today in Bastar division," he added.
The bandh call has hit normal life in the interior pockets of Bastar as transporters havestoppedplying buses to the remote areas fearingnaxalattacks.

However, traffic was normal between district headquarters and major towns, he added.
Meanwhile, the naxals have thrown pamphlets and put up posters in the interiors of Dantewada, Sukma and Bijapur districts appealing to support their bandh call which is a protest against fake encounters, rapes of tribal women by security personnel and failure on part of the state government to fulfill promises made to the farmers.