Four policemen died in a Maoist landmine attack in central India and six rebels were killed in a shoot-out, officials said Monday, as government troops prepare to tackle a growing insurgency. The police officers were killed on Sunday about 450 kilometres (280 miles) from Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh state, which is a stronghold of the left-wing rebels, superintendent Ambrish Mishra told AFP.
In a separate incident, police said they shot dead six suspected rebels and recovered a cache of weapons and explosives in a nearby district. Government and paramilitary forces are preparing for a major operation to take on the Maoists in the densely forested Chhattisgarh region.