5Maoists killed in Jharkhand shoot- out

Security forces killed at least five Maoist insurgents in a shoot- out in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand yesterday morning, the second such offensive against the rebels in little over a month.

Acting on a tip- off that some 70 Maoists holed up in Serendaag forest of Latehar district were planning a major strike, security forces launched a combing operation.

Authorities said as the forces reached the hideout, the rebels openedfired, leading to a bloody shoot- out during which at least five Maoists were killed. The security forces also recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunitions, including three AK- 47 assault rifles, during the encounter that lasted about an hour. Police said the rebels fledthe scene after suffering heavy casualties.

“We have recovered the bodies of fiveMaoists and the search operation is on,” the local Latehar district superintendent of police, Prashant Anand, said. He said security forces had surrounded the rebels on Tuesday night.

This is the second major breakthrough of the security forces in the past 32 days. On February 26, the police had killed four Maoist leaders in an encounter in Palamu district of Jharkhand.