Two killed in Chhattisgarh on Maoist stir’s first day (Lead)

May 21st, 2011 - 11:29 pm ICT by IANS  

Raipur, May 21 (IANS) A special police officer (SPO) and a civilian were killed in Chhattisgarh Saturday, the first day of the two-day shutdown called by the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), officials said.

The shutdown hit life in forested interiors of Chhattisgarh, particularly in the sprawling Bastar region.

A body of the SPO, Ramaiyya, was recovered in Bijapur district while in the neighbouring Dantewada district a civilian was killed. Police claimed Maoists had mistaken him as a policeman.

Maoists also damaged a rail track in Dantewada and burnt three vehicles used for road construction work in Kanker district.

The guerrillas blocked key roads at about a dozen locations in Bastar region, including state and national highways in Bijapur and Dantewada districts. Fearing attacks, transporters also kept their vehicles off the road, police said.

Security has been stepped up in the 40,000 sq km Bastar region, where Maoists have a stronghold since late 1980s, besides in the western part of Rajnandgaon district in western part of the state, the officials said.

Maoists have called for the 48-hour shutdown in several central and eastern parts of the state to protest the arrest of their three central committee members in Bihar last month.

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