Maoists blow up railway signal system in Andhra Pradesh

Maoists on Sunday blew up a railway signal system in Vijayanagaram, damaging property worth rupees three million.

Kuneru (AP), July 29 : Maoists on Sunday blew up a railway signal system in Vijayanagaram, damaging property worth rupees three million.

About 20 Maoists, including five women, blew up the cabin at Kuneru railway station in Vijayanagaram, where signalling system was installed.

The Maoists also set on fire the records of the railway station.

"They were 15 to 20, out of whom five were women. They took control of the station. They set all the records on the fire and blew up the signalling system," said Trimurti, Station Master.

Maoist left a note pasted on the wall of the railway station demanding their leader Dharma alias Bhupati, who was arrested on July 23 by Andhra Police, should be presented before a court immediately.

Maoists operate in 13 of 29 states along the "red corridor", referring to a stretch from the Indo-Nepal border to the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

According to Home Ministry, 76 districts in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Maharashtra, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal are 'badly affected by Maoist violence'.

ANI