Raipur, Jan 27 (IANS) Over 100 Maoist guerrillas stormed into a mining complex of the state-run NMDC Ltd in Chhattisgarh’s restive Dantewada district early Wednesday and set 19 trucks on fire.
The armed Maoists raided the mining complex of India’s largest iron ore miner at Kirandul, about 400 km south of here, at around 2 a.m.

“The rebels sneaked into Kirandul’s 11-B deposit of the NMDC and burnt 19 trucks hired by NMDC for iron ore transportation. This resulted in panic amongst the hundreds of NMDC staff engaged in mining in the hilly area,” Lakhan Thakur, in charge of the Kirandul police station, told IANS over the phone.

Senior district police officials have rushed to the attack site.

Maoist rebels, who claim to fight for the rights of poor peasants and landless labourers, are very active in and around NMDC’s mining facilities in their stronghold Dantewada.

Over the years, there have been several attacks on security guards at NMDC mining complexes in Chhattisgarh. Iron ore dispatches have also been hit regularly.