In a tragic turn during a high-risk anti-Naxal operation, a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI), Satyaban Kumar Singh, was killed in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast in Odisha’s Sundergarh district early Saturday morning. The incident occurred around 6 a.m. near K Balang village in the Rourkela region, where a joint team of the CRPF and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Odisha Police was conducting a routine combing operation to neutralize suspected Maoist activity in the dense forest belt. Singh, a 34-year-old officer of the CRPF’s 134th Battalion and a native of Kushinagar district in Uttar Pradesh, suffered severe injuries to his left leg in the explosion.

Following the blast, emergency efforts were made to evacuate him to a hospital in Rourkela. Despite medical intervention, Singh succumbed to his injuries, as confirmed by official sources. The loss of the brave officer has once again highlighted the ongoing threat posed by Maoist insurgents in India’s eastern and central states, where such IED attacks continue to claim the lives of security personnel. The CRPF, in coordination with state forces, has ramped up surveillance and intensified search operations in the affected zones following the incident. Senior officials are closely monitoring the region and have vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice.

This attack comes amid a broader strategy by Maoist elements to disrupt law enforcement presence in forest regions by using guerrilla tactics and hidden explosives. The Odisha government and central agencies have condemned the attack and assured full support to Singh’s family. Security has been further tightened across Sundergarh, and reinforcements have been deployed. ASI Singh’s sacrifice adds to the long list of personnel who have laid down their lives combating internal threats, and his death is being mourned across police and paramilitary ranks nationwide.