At least 14 security personnel belonging to the Special Task Force (STF) were killed in a landmine blast suspected to have been triggered by Maoist rebels in Jharkhand's Bokaro district on Saturday.
"The 16-member security team was on a routine long range patrolling when the blast took place at around 3 pm. Twelve security personnel died on the spot while two died in course of treatment," Gauri Shankar Rath, additional director general of police said.
The landmine was planted at a culvert.
The two injured personnel are undergoing treatment at the Bokaro hospital.
Thirteen security personnel were killed in October last year in a landmine blast in Chatra.
Maoist rebels are active in 16 out of 22 districts of the state. Nearly 550 people, including 245 security personnel, have been killed in past five years.