Bomb blast kills nine people in central India

At least eight policemen and a driver were killed in a bomb blast set off by Maoist rebels in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, police said on Monday.

The police vehicle in which the victims were travelling was hit by a blast in the Bijapur district of the state on Monday, a police statement said.

This is the latest in a series of sporadic attacks on security forces in the state. It follows frequent gunbattles between the forces and the rebels in which several rebels have been killed in recent months.

Chhattisgarh and its neighbouring states in central and eastern India have been affected by a decades-long insurgency by Maoist rebels, although the areas they operate in have reduced significantly over the years.

The rebels subscribe to a form of communism propagated by late Chinese leader Mao Zedong, and have waged a guerrilla-style offensive against the government, leading to periodic clashes and casualties on both sides.

Maoists say they are fighting to give poor Indian farmers and landless labourers more control over their land and a greater claim to its minerals currently exploited by major mining companies.