AMN /

naxalSeven police personnel were killed and six others injured in a landmine blast suspected to have been carried out by Maoists in Koraput district of Odisha, close to Andhra Pradesh border.

Police said that, the blast took place yesterday evening when a van carrying 13 jawans of Odisha State Armed Police flung off the road due to the explosion of an IED reportedly planted by Maoists.

The place where the blast occurred is about 2 kilometers from Sunki in Koraput district, on Jagdalpur-Vishakhapatnam National Highway. The injured police personnel were taken to hospitals in Koraput in Odisha and Visakhapatanam in Andhra Pradesh.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has termed the incident a cowardly act.