Deadly Maoist attack on Indian forces

Maoist rebels ambushed security forces and killed at least 16 people involved in a mine-clearing operation in a remote part of eastern India on Tuesday, officials said, as the group demonstrated its strength ahead of general elections next month.

Security forces have been stationed in the area for months to protect workers who are clearing mines and building roads in a densely forested area in resource-rich Chhattisgarh state. The rebels oppose government efforts to open up the area, fearing it portends mining activities that would degrade the forests, on which local tribes depend for food and shelter.

Forty-four troops were in the camp when 200 armed rebels surrounded it and opened fire, said Mukesh Gupta, inspector general of police. Troops returned fire, and a fierce gun battle lasted about three hours.

The head of anti-Maoist operations in the state police force told Reuters one civilian was among the dead.

"Total death 16 ... including one civilian," R.K. Vij, a senior Home Ministry official, said in a text message sent from a helicopter after the attack. There were conflicting accounts of the death toll, with other officers telling local media at least 20 died.

There were no immediate reports of rebel casualties in the attack. Police searched nearby, but the rebels escaped.

Television images from the site showed a heavy truck smoldering with its tires burning.

The rebels, who say they are inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, have been fighting for more than three decades in several Indian states, demanding land and jobs for agricultural laborers and the poor. They've recently grown in strength in areas where poor, tribal villagers have come into conflict with mining companies seeking resources for industrialization.

The Maoists seek the overthrow of the Indian state but have so far not managed to spread significantly into urban areas. Attacks picked up slightly last year after peaking in 2010.

"They attack us to demoralize us. They attack us to loot our weapons," said a ministry official who asked not to be named.

The ambush was just a few miles from where rebels killed 27 people, including many senior political leaders, before state elections last year. The attacks seek to disrupt the electoral process, the official said.

"This time they know if we succeed in elections, it will dent their reputation," he said.

The rebels are in 20 of India's 28 states, according to the Home Ministry. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that the rebels are India's biggest security threat. Thousands of people — including police, militants and civilians — have died in the violence in recent years.

Wire services