Three cops killed by Maoist extremists

In a fierce gunbattle between Maoist extremists and security personnel, two CRPF men and one constable of the Jharkhand Military Police (JMP) were killed and four others were injured near Parasnath Hill in Giridih district on Friday. CRPF havildar Balaji Mangraj, constable Desh Pandey and JMP’s Manoj Thapa were given guard of honour before their bodies were sent home in Punjab, Maharashtra and Jharkhand respectively. The four injured—Jharkhand police Sub Inspector Pramod Pandey, constable Jai Prakash Mahato and CRPF constables Rakesh Kumar and Gurupal Singh — were rushed to the Ranchi Apollo hospital.Giridih SP Murari Lal Meena dispatched a contingent of security forces on Wednesday to launch a crackdown on the rebels, following a tip-off from the state intelligence. A section of the Maoists were holding a meet at Parasnath Hill. Rs 10 lakh would be paid as compensation to the kin of the dead soldiers, DGP V D Ram said.