Phulbani: A villager sustained critical injuries after a landmine, suspected to be planted by Maoists, exploded near Kiamunda under Phiringia police station limits in Kandhamal district on Monday.
The seriously injured man has been identified as Indra Kanhar, a resident of Bandhadani village. He is reportedly undergoing treatment at a hospital.
On the other hand, as many as six forest personnel who had gone to the nearby Kiamunda forest in Sadingia panchayat to douse a wildfire are yet to be traced after the explosion rocked the area.
On being asked, Phiringia Forest Range Officer Bijay Malik stated that the wildfire response team was led by forester Braja Sundar Das.
“However, communication could not be established with the team due to low network connectivity in the forest area,” Malik said adding that they might be staying low in the forest area after the explosion.
Even though the police and forest department are aware of the incident, no steps have been taken so far to trace by the personnel and also the bomb squad are yet to reach the spot.
