Mine blast kills seven police officers

Suspected Maoist rebels detonated a roadside mine in remote eastern India today, killing seven police officers, a news report said.

The attack occurred in Jhargati area of Narayanpur district, nearly 215 miles south of Raipur, the capital of Chattisgarh state, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

The rebel assault was the latest in a series in the region, where widespread poverty has fuelled a lengthy insurgency.

Police reinforcements have rushed to the area, PTI said.

More than 6,000 people - police, soldiers, and civilians suspected to be police informers - have been killed since the rebels launched their campaign from the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh more than two decades ago.

The rebels, who claim to be inspired by Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong, have been fighting in several Indian states, demanding land and jobs for agricultural labourers and the poor.