Anti-Naxal operations: CRPF Inspector dies 20 days after suffering IED injury in Jharkhand

A 58-year-old CRPF inspector succumbed to injuries at the AIIMS hospital here on Thursday, 20 days after he was critically injured in a Maoist triggered IED blast in Jharkhand.

Inspector Koushal Kumar Mishra suffered severe injuries on his left leg in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast that took place during an anti-Naxal operation in the West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand on October 10, a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) officer said.

Mishra, who hails from Bihar, had been under treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) since October 11 after he was airlifted from Jharkhand. He breathed his last in the early hours of October 30, the officer said.

The Inspector, belonging to the 60th battalion of the CRPF, was leading a patrol of troops in the North Saranda forests of the said district when the blast took place.

Two other personnel, including Constable Mahendra Laskar (45), were also injured in this blast. Laskar, hailing from Assam, had succumbed to his injuries on October 11.

IEDs have been the single largest threat to security forces deployed in Left Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected regions even when the Naxal insurgency is on wane and the Union Government has declared that the menace will be eliminated from the country by March 2026.