IED event in Chhattisgargh, Chhote Bethiya, Kanker District area, India on Sat 2nd May 2026

Three personnel of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) were killed when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), allegedly planted earlier by Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), detonated during a demining operation in a forested area under Chhote Bethiya Police Station in Kanker District of Chhattisgarh on May 2, reports Telangana Today. During the operation, four members of the Kanker DRG sustained injuries after being caught in the explosion. Of them, three personnel — Inspector Sukhram Vatti, Constable Krishna Komra and Constable Sanjay Gadhpale — succumbed to their injuries at the site, officials confirmed. The fourth injured personnel, Constable Parmanand Komra, is currently undergoing treatment and is being provided with necessary medical care. Bastar Range Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sundarraj Pattilingam said that in recent months, Security Forces (SFs) have recovered and neutralised hundreds of IEDs hidden by Maoists across the Bastar region, based on intelligence inputs and information provided by surrendered cadres. “However, in today’s unfortunate incident, while the Kanker District Police team was in the process of neutralising an IED, it detonated unexpectedly, resulting in the deaths of three police personnel and leaving one member of the force critically injured,” the IG said in a statement.