Maoists destroy machinery of construction company

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Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com/2009/08/27/stories/2009082753550300.htm)
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Maoists destroy machinery of construction company


Staff Reporter

The firm was laying a road under PMGSY in the area

Aound 20 armed naxals along with 50 supporters take part in the raidIt is an effort to stop firms from taking up road-laying work, say police
BERHAMPUR: Maoists allegedly attacked the camp of a construction company and destroyed machinery near Mahupadar village under Mathili police station in Malkangiri district of south Orissa on Wednesday.
The naxals burnt down three tippers, one excavator and one machine used to melt and mix coal tar at the worksite. The construction company was laying a road under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in the area. According to sources, around 20 armed naxals along with more than 50 supporters reached the camp of the construction company. They threatened the labourers sleeping in the camp not to oppose their activities or try to contact anyone. The panicked labourers were kept under the watch of armed cadres while others got involved in the arson. A Jeypore based construction company of Koraput district had dared to take up the work in this remote naxal infested area. It was laying the Govindpalli-Salim-Mahupadar road under the PMGSY. But naxals fear that the road would enable easy movement of police troupe.
According to senior police officials it was an effort of the naxals to dissuade contractors from taking up any road-aying work in naxal infested areas of the district.
In February, Maoists had killed a construction contractor, Prasanna Kumar Swain at Govindpalli.
His company was involved in laying of roads in several remote pockets of the district. Maoists are not letting any construction company build two major bridges in Malkangiri district since the past eight years.
They are the Gurupriya Bridge in Chitrakonda area and another on Sileru River near Motu.
A major construction company, Gammon India Limited quit the Gurupriya bridge project due to Maoist threats and attacks on its construction site.


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