HYDERABAD: Security forces on Tuesday moved into the dense Bastar forests and recovered the bodies of eight policemen killed in Monday's Maoist ambush near Kudur village in Chhattisgarh.

Police officials said while three Chhattisgarh police jawans managed to escape, one of their colleagues Suraj Netam was believed to have been lost in the jungle. "We hope he is alive and will reach any of the security camps," Jagdalpur Superintendent of Police G.P. Singh told The Hindu on the phone from the attack site.

It took nearly 18 hours for the paramilitary forces to reach the place where more than 300 Maoists, armed with automatic weapons and grenade launchers, ambushed the 12-member, motorcycle-borne police team.

The team, Mr. Singh said, was headed for another village, but changed course to Kudur after it was tipped off about the possibility of Maoists visiting a nearby shandy.

The Maoists had mined almost a 300-metre stretch of road, with hills on either side. The landmines, claymore mines and directional mines turned the stretch into a killing zone. The rebels, forming five assault teams, positioned themselves strategically behind rocks.All the mines were detonated as the police team entered the road stretch. While some policemen appeared to have died instantly, the others fired back at the naxals. The policemen were armed with Kalashnikovs, SLRs and a grenade launcher.

"The Maoists too were armed with similar weapons, but they heavily outnumbered the policemen. The terrain was extremely hostile to us, but my jawans put up a brave fight. They fought until they exhausted their ammunition," Mr. Singh said.

Some casualties among the naxals were also suspected, as the rebels were seen carrying away bodies, Mr. Singh said quoting the injured constables.

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