Shillong/Guwahati:
At least eight personnel of the Border Security Force (BSF) were killed and eight others injured in an ambush by the anti-talk faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland in Assam's Kokrajhar district on Monday.
According to official reports, the militants of the Ranjan Daimary-led faction used automatic weapons to ambush the convoy of the BSF when it was on a patrol duty in remote Ultapani forest area near the Indo-Bhutan border.
A BSF spokesman, at the force's frontier headquarters in Shillong, said that three jawans were killed on the spot, and five others succumbed to their injuries on way to hospital.
Some of the eight injured jawans were taken to Lower Assam Hospital and Research Centre at Bongaigaon, while others were taken to Kokrajhar civil hospital for treatment.
Critically injured were referred to a hospital is Guwahati, the spokesperson said.
The deceased have been identified as Bijoy Kumar, S K Sharma, Arabinda Dere, Bolaram Lamba, Santa Ramthree, Naresh Kumar, Kuber Bora and Hira Singh.
A combing operation has been launched by the security forces, including the Army along the Indo-Bhutan border, to nab the culprits.
The patrol was on way from Bangladoba in Chirang district of Assam to Ultapani in Kokrajhar when it was ambushed.
The paramilitary vehicle came under heavy firing inside the Ultapani reserve forest, when it was about 7 km from its camp.