Maoists blow up railway track near Dhanbad in Jharkhand - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Continuing with their violent form of agitation and aim to spread terror among the poor people, a group of Maoist rebels blew up a stretch of railway track near Dhanbad in Jharkhand state on Monday. The latest incident of sabotaging train services is part of the 72-hour Bandh (shutdown) call given by the ultras in four states of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa. The call for shutdown was given to register protest against the Central government's 'Operation Green Hunt' to track down Maoists. Security personnel learnt about the blown up track near the railway station, just after dawn while doing their routine patrolling in the region. The incident derailed a goods wagon. However, the track was restored by the railway authorities soon. "A 1.5 metre railway track has been destroyed in the blast. The restoration work is almost finished. There have been a number of damages caused in the down line. Currently, we are letting Rajdhani (a super fast train) pass through the railway line." said Amarendra Das, Senior Public Relation Officer, Dhanbad Railway Station. The Maoist movement that began four decades ago championing the cause of poor peasants in the Naxalbari area of West Bengal has now spread to different States of the country, with the rebels targeting police and government property in hit-and-run attacks. The rebels have ignored repeated calls to renounce violence and negotiate, and have stepped up their attacks in recent months, prompting the government to go after them in a concerted strike. The Maoists contend that they are fighting for the rights of the poor and marginal farmers and landless laborers. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had described Maoists movement as one of the gravest domestic threat to India's internal security.