Extremists kill road contractor in Odisha’s Malkangiri dist

Left wing extremists carried out an attack killing a road contractor in Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Thursday.

The attack took place at Golia under Mathili police station where a road was being built under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. About 20 Maoists reached the spot and ordered the stoppage of roadwork in the morning.

The contractor, identified as Sukumar Mandal, was present at the spot to supervise the work. When he refused to come out of his SUV, extremists, believed to be members of the CPI (Maoist), pulled him out from the vehicle. He was subsequently hacked to death.

While leaving the spot, ultras torched a tractor and the contractor’s vehicle.

The CPI (Maoist) was opposed to the construction of a wide road along Odisha-Chhattisgarh border as it would ensure smooth movement of vehicles of security forces.

After suffering back-to-back setbacks recently, the CPI (Maoist) has made its first major attack of late in Malkangiri. Last week, two extremists, one a woman, were killed by security forces inside Swabhiman Anchal, a Maoist bastion. Last month, a Maoist was gunned down and another was arrested.

Director General of Police Abhay, who visited Koraput and Malkangiri districts last week, had urged ultras to lay down arms.