VISAKHAPATNAM/HYDERABAD: In a major attack, Maoists launched a rocket attack deep in the Vishakapatnam agency area close to the Orissa border. A majority of the casualties could belong to the Orissa Armed Reserve Force, other sources said. But reports with TOI suggest that 12 men of the elite Greyhounds anti-Maoist squad could be among the victims. There were reports that Hukumpeta SI has also gone missing.
The attack on the Greyhounds could constitute a debilitating blow to the war against the leftists as, among the different state security forces engaged in fighting the Maoists, this elite force in Andhra has been the most successful so far.
Top police officials in Hyderabad say the state militia commission (SMC) of the Maoist party is behind the attack. There were also reports that Kalimela dalam in the Andhra-Orissa border could have been involved in the ambush.
A red alert has been sounded in Visakhapatnam and adjoining areas across the two states. Andhra CM Y S Rajasekhara Reddy held an urgent review meeting with top police officials and urged them to requisition six more choppers to search for the missing cops. The CM is going to Vizag on Monday morning after a cabinet meeting.
Source: The Times of India, June 30, 2008
