Gadchiroli, Mar 16 (PTI) Security personnel defused a landmine in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra following a gun-battle with Naxals and averted a major tragedy, police said on Monday.
The landmine was unearthed on Sunday in jungles in the Bodmeta area by a joint team of the Gadchiroli police and the CRPF, they said.
The team was conducting an anti-Naxal operation when around 11 am its members came under gunfire from ultras, who also triggered a landmine blast, the police added.
The Naxals escaped in thick jungles after heavy retaliatory firing from the security personnel, they said.
The personnel, while inspecting the encounter spot, spotted another landmine and defused it, the police added.