48 security men lost lives in 'the moving coffin' blasts in Bastar

RAIPUR: Amid Bastar witnessing nearly 10 incidents of attack on anti-landmine vehicles claiming lives of about 48 security personnel since 2005, the Mine Protection Vehicles (MPVs) are becoming a cause of concern for senior officers even as it had been labelled as "the moving coffins" at many platforms.

Maoists are in know of capacity of anti-landmine vehicles that can withstand 20 kilograms of Improvised Explosive devices (IED) hence, ensure to target vehicles with heavy explosives of about 40 kilograms and above.

The concern has deepened after the recent killing of nine CRPF personnel on March 13 when the MPV they were travelling in, was blown up in an IED explosion in Sukma.

According to the figures available from highly placed sources, nearly 10 anti-landmine vehicles were attacked and blown up in major and minor incidents in Bastar that claimed lives of 48 security men and injured 42.

An MPV withstands explosives not more than 20 kilograms. Another challenge is that Maoists have advanced to stuffing explosives in plastic containers instead of tins, which aren't easily detected by mine-detection equipment.

Dantewada range DIG P Sundarraj said, "There are mine-detection equipment to detect non-metallic containers as well but they aren't always available at all places. Moreover, when the IEDs are planted at tricky curves or diversions on a construction site- like the one laid in recent attack in Sukma- the IEDs go undetected at times. There could also be chance of mechanical error, hence, it's important to utilise all options including human observation and dog squads."

Bastar, being a mineral rich land with abundance of iron-ore earlier, used to mislead the mine-detection personnel and would beep on detection of minerals. DIG Sundarraj said that the calibration of mine-detection equipment is done in such a way that the nature of soil or land is not a challenge anymore.

Among the major incidents include killings of 22 CRPF jawans and three injured in September 2005 at Bijapur district when Maoists had reportedly used 200 kilogram of IED to blow up the anti-landmine. Ten security personnel were killed in a blast on June 10, 2011 at Katekalyan in Dantewada district, five others were killed and eight injured on April 13, 2015 in another blast in Kirandul region of Dantewada district.

It was in 2011 when K Vijaykumar, then CRPF DG, described the MPVs as "coffin on wheels". He had asked all CRPF units in Naxal-affected areas to prefer foot patrol and use vehicles including MPVs as rare as possible.

On possibility of shunning the use of MPVs, DIG Sundarraj said any mode of transportation in Bastar is vulnerable and none is full-proof. We have to take precaution and perform extensive patrolling with all resources available. There's no chance of shunning the use of MPV as it has its own useful role to play.