Indian Maoists ready their weapons as they take part in a training camp in a forested area of Bijapur District in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh on July 8, 2012.[/caption]A group of Maoist rebels has ambushed a convoy of police vehicles in the troubled eastern India, killing at least four police officers and injuring several others, security sources say.
The deadly attack took place in an impoverished and densely forested state, home to a large number of Maoist rebels on Tuesday.
The causalities come after dozens of rebels opened fire on vehicles carrying police superintendent Amarjeet Balihar and several other security personnel in Dumka district in Jharkhand state on Tuesday.
"More than 50 armed Maoists were involved in the attack," deputy police superintendent Anil Srivastava said.
The developments come weeks after rebels launched a deadly attack on a convoy of cars carrying local leaders and supporters of the ruling Congress Party in the state of Chhattisgarh in late May. At least 28 people died and several others sustained severe injury in the deadly ambush.
The rebels, who are supported by tribal groups and landless farmers, have fought against state and central government for many years. Thousands of people have died in the Maoist-related clashes over the past three decades.
The Maoist militancy has now spread to 20 of the 28 Indian states.
India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh considers the Maoists as the gravest threat to the country's internal security.
On June 13, a group of heavily-armed rebels opened fire on a passenger train in the adjacent state of Bihar, killing at least one police officer and two passengers.
In May, they killed 24 people including local leaders of the country's governing Congress party during an ambush in the central state of Chhattisgarh.
The revolutionaries have waged a decades-long battle across central and eastern states to overthrow local and national authorities.
This comes while rebels say they are fighting for the rights of the poor and landless farmers in India.
By Press TV
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