Gadchiroli, May 1: 15 security personnel, along with their driver, were reported killed in a blast carried out by Maoist militants in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district on Wednesday. An improvised explosive device (IED) was used by the Naxals to target the security officials, confirmed Maharashtra DGP Subodh Jaiswal.

The vehicle which was targeted in the IED blast was carrying 15 security personnel of the C60 Commandos, an anti-Maoist squad of Gadchiroli police. Prime Minister expressed deep anguish over the attacks, claiming that none of the perpetrators would be spared. Maoists Attack BJP Convoy in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada, MLA Bhima Mandavi Among Six Killed

The security team which was rushed to the site following the explosion was locked in an encounter with the militants by the time this report was first published.

Exchange of Gunfire Underway:

Earlier in the day, 27 vehicles and machines sent for road construction were burnt down by the Maoists at a road construction site in Kurkheda of Gadchiroli. The left-wing extremists had warned the administration against carrying out any road construction activity in the region.

Gadchiroli, which went to polls on April 11, had also witnessed attack on the voting day. Despite the boycott call and violence threat issued by Maoists, the polls were largely peaceful.

Two days before the commencement of Lok Sabha elections 2019, the Naxals had carried out a major attack using IED in Chhattisgarh, where BJP leader and Dantewada MLA Bheema Mandavi was among the six killed.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 01, 2019 02:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).